Courtesy of Utah State Athletics

LAS VEGAS – They say that nothing worth having comes easy. Perhaps no one knows that more so now than the Utah State men’s tennis team.

A day after a marathon 4-3 win just to reach the title match of the Mountain West Tournament, the Aggies again brought things down to the final point against third-seeded Boise State.

This time, senior Jean-Baptiste Badon contributed the heroics, pulling out a thrilling three-set victory at No. 1 singles, including a tiebreaker in the final set, to clinch the MW tournament title with a 4-3 win over the Broncos on Friday night at the Darling Tennis Center.

The title is Utah State’s first conference tournament title since winning back-to-back MW tournaments in 2017 and 2018, and completes the team’s undefeated run through the conference after going 7-0 in regular season conference play. The regular season and tournament titles now bring the program’s total MW titles across regular and postseason play to eight. USU also swept the regular season and tournament titles in 2017 and 2018, and added regular season titles in 2016 and 2024.


With the victory, the Aggies also earn an automatic berth to the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship beginning on Friday, May 1, with the selection show on Monday, April 27, at 2 p.m. (MT), on NCAA.com.

Doubles
As they have throughout the season, USU’s doubles teams set a strong tone for the Aggies to begin the match. At No. 1 doubles, sophomore Xavier Calvelo and freshman Jakub Medved earned a 6-3 win, allowing Badon and sophomore Dmitri Goubin to then clinch the doubles point with a 7-5 victory at the second position.

Sophomores Eliot Nobel and Roman Venger provided further backup at the third position as they held a 6-5 lead and were at set point before the match was left unfinished.

Singles
Singles play, however, proved more challenging as the Broncos took the opening set at four of the six positions of the lineup, eventually taking a 2-1 lead in the match with straight-set wins at the second and fifth positions. Nobel then answered back for USU, scoring a 6-4, 6-3 victory at No. 4 singles to square things at 2-2.

The Broncos again jumped in front, this time with a win at No. 6 singles. Again, the Aggies answered as Venger tied the match at 3 all with a 6-3, 6-4 win at No. 4 singles, leaving the fate of the conference title to No. 1 singles, the only match in the lineup to go a full three sets.

After falling in the opening set, Badon bounced back to force that third set with a 6-4 win in the second frame. The final set then turned into a roller coaster with Badon initially breaking serve to build an early lead before BSU’s Avery Tallakson battled back to take a 6-5 lead. Badon then held serve to force the match to a tiebreaker to decide the championship.

In the tiebreaker, Badon built a commanding lead by winning the first four points, including two off Bronco serves. After trading several points, Badon then forced a long return that fell just beyond the end line, clinching the match and the title with a 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4) victory.

Next Up
Utah State prepares for the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship, set to begin on Friday, May 1, with the selection show on Monday, April 27, at 2 p.m. (MT), on NCAA.com.

FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can follow USU’s men’s tennis team on Twitter @USUMensTennis, on Facebook at /UtahStateMensTennis or on Instagram at USUMensTennis. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter, @USUAthletics, Facebook at /USUAthletics and on Instagram, @USUAthletics.

No. 1 Utah State vs No. 3 Boise State
April 24, 2026
Darling Tennis Center
Las Vegas, Nevada

Results
No. 1 Utah State 4, No. 3 Boise State 3

Doubles
1. Xavier Calvelo/Jakub Medved (Utah State) def. Carson Baker/Avery Tallakson (Boise State) 6-3
2. Jean-Baptiste Badon/Dmitri Goubin (Utah State) def. Stewart Aronson/Filip Soderqvist (Boise State) 7-5
3. Eliot Nobel/Roman Venger (Utah State) vs Taiyo Kurata/Idriss Haddouch (Boise State) 6-5, unfinished

Singles
1. Jean-Baptiste Badon (Utah State) def. Avery Tallakson (Boise State) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4)
2. Stewart Aronson (Boise State) def. Xavier Calvelo (Utah State) 6-4, 6-0
3. Roman Venger (Utah State) def. Carson Baker (Boise State) 6-3, 6-4
4. Eliot Nobel (Utah State) def. Filip Soderqvist (Boise State) 6-4, 6-3
5. Lukas Velik (Boise State) def. Jakub Medved (Utah State) 6-4, 6-4
6. Taiyo Kurata (Boise State) def. Dmitri Goubin (Utah State) 6-3, 7-6 (4)

Match Notes
Order of Finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (2,5,4,6,3,1)
No. 1 Utah State (19-5, 7-0 MW)
No. 3 Boise State (22-9, 4-3 MW)

– USU –

Print Friendly Version