Air Force Academy

The second-seeded BYU Cougars made sure that No. 6 seed Air Force didn't post its second straight upset at the MWC Men's Tennis Championships Friday in San Diego, Calif., by defeating the Falcons 4-0 in the semifinals. Air Force, which beat third-seeded New Mexico on Thursday, ends its season with an 18-10 record.

BYU took an early 1-0 lead with victories at No. 2 and 3 doubles as Air Force failed to win the doubles point for the eighth consecutive match. AFA's top team of Shannon Buck and Tyler McClung prevailed at the No. 1 spot, defeating Nima Roshan and Jose Lechuga, 8-3. Buck and McClung, ranked 31st in the country, hope to advance to the NCAA Championships with an impressive 19-3 overall record and a 14-2 mark at the No. 1 position.

After playing so well in singles against New Mexico on Thursday, Air Force struggled on Friday. BYU clinched the match with straight-set victories at the Nos. 2, 5 and 6 spots. The Cougars' Chip Hand led things off with a 6-1, 6-0 romp over Justin Lau at No. 5. James Ludlow followed suit at the No. 2 position, downing McClung, 6-1, 7-5 and Jonathan Sanchez wrapped up the match with a 6-0, 6-3 decision over Robby Alexander at No. 6. The other three singles matches were then halted at that time.

Buck, who won the first set, 6-2, against Roshan before his match was stopped, is hoping to advance to the NCAA Championships in singles as well. The junior, who earned his third consecutive all-MWC selection earlier this week, is 25-3 overall this season and 21-1 in dual matches, all at the No. 1 position. He is currently ranked No. 60 in the country and has an 18-match winning streak.

AFA's 18 wins this season are the second-most since the 2000 season, and the Falcons posted 15 wins or more for the 27th time in the last 29 seasons. Head coach Rich Gugat finished his 31st year at Air Force with a career record of 690-208, the second-most victories by any active Division I coach.

No. 2 BYU 4, No. 6 Air Force 0
April 29, 2005, San Diego, Calif.
MWC Championships - Semifinals
Singles
1. Shannon Buck (AF) vs. Nima Roshan, 6-2, 2-1 DNF 2. James Ludlow (BYU) def. Tyler McClung, 6-1, 7-5 3. Trevor Johnson (AF) vs. Jeff Das, 6-6, DNF 4. Chris Dong (AF) vs. Shane LaPorte, 6-7 DNF5. Chip Hand (BYU) def. Justin Lau, 6-1, 6-0 6. Jonathan Sanchez (BYU) def. Robby Alexander, 6-0, 6-3 Doubles 1. Buck/McClung (AF) def. Roshan/Jose Lechuga, 8-32. Dominik Kaufhold/Ludlow (BYU) def. Dong/Johnson, 8-5 3. Hand/LaPorte (BYU) def. Lau/Alexander, 8-4