BOZEMAN – The University of North Dakota men’s tennis team bounced back on Sunday afternoon, taking down Montana State, 4-3, from the Bobcat-Anderson Tennis Center in Bozeman, Mont. 

UND (3-1) had to dig itself out of an early hole for the first time all season, as MSU (0-3) grabbed a 1-0 lead with a trio of wins in doubles play. 

The deficit didn’t last long for the visitors, however, as rookie Leo Galliano closed out his strong weekend with another win on the No. 3 court to open singles play by a 6-1, 6-4 score to even the match at 1-1 before fellow rookie Andrew Hayduke II gave the Fighting Hawks their first lead with a 6-2, 7-5 victory at the fourth position. 

After the Bobcats tied the score at 2-2 on the top court, Ange-Kevin Koua rallied back from a loss in the opening stanza and a 4-1 deficit in the middle set to grab a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 win at the No. 2 spot to put the visitors just one win away from clinching the match. 

The bottom duo of Jayho Hong and Ethan Terry had to wait to get going once again, as MSU had only four courts at its facility, but Hong put a quick end to the match with a 6-2, 6-3 victory at the No. 6 court to record the clinch. MSU grabbed the final point of the day at the fifth spot to close out the match with a 4-3 score. 

North Dakota will head to Hawaii next weekend with a pair of matches beginning on Friday against Hawaii Pacific.