Rebs Roll Past Zags To Stay Perfect At Home - University of Nevada Las Vegas Athletics

LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – The 64th-ranked UNLV men's tennis team survived a wild doubles session and ultimately cruised to a 4-0 win over Gonzaga on a warm Wednesday afternoon at the Fertitta Tennis Complex.

The Rebels remained perfect in seven outings at home this season to improve to 9-4 overall while Bulldogs from the West Coast Conference fell to 6-5.

Doubles was a doozy. After the Zags won 6-4 on court three, the hosts needed to win the other two matches to earn the point and did just that – barely – as each went to a tiebreaker. Illia Maksymchuk and Marko Maksimovic eked by Oscar Rashed and Nicholas Reeves, 7-6, (7-5), at the second spot before Ilia Snitari and Arda Karakas won by the very same score at No. 1 over Giovanni Branchetti and Jay Fairclough to clinch the lead.

The Rebels used the momentum heading into singles, winning the first set on all six courts. Vitaliy Horovoy was first off, blitzing Tom Dunlop, 6-0, 6-0, at No. 5. Snitari, ranked 59th nationally, was next with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Fairclough at the top of the lineup. Maksimovic then ended things with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Branchetti on court two.

REBEL OF THE MATCH: Ilia Snitari – already an All-American -- helped gut out yet another doubles comeback for his team and then breezed in singles to improve to an eye-popping 22-2, including 10-1 in dual matches, as a sophomore.

UP NEXT: UNLV will close out its non-conference schedule by hosting No. 74 Hawai'i in another mid-week match on Tuesday starting with doubles play at 10 a.m. Admission to all matches at the Fertitta Tennis Complex is free of charge.

Men's Tennis Match Results
#64 UNLV 4, GONZAGA 0
March 11, 2026, at Las Vegas, NV
(Fertitta Tennis Complex)

Singles competition
1. #59 Ilia Snitari (UNLVMT) def. Jay Fairclough (GONZ) 6-3, 6-1
2. Marko Maksimovic (UNLVMT) def. Giovanni Branchetti (GONZ) 6-4, 6-2
3. Illia Maksymchuk (UNLVMT) vs. Oscar Rashed (GONZ) 6-2, 4-5, unfinished
4. Michael Kouame (UNLVMT) vs. Nicholas Reeves (GONZ) 6-3, 4-5, unfinished
5. Vitaliy Horovoy (UNLVMT) def. Tom Dunlop (GONZ) 6-0, 6-0
6. Taiyo Hirano (UNLVMT) vs. Diego Herrera (GONZ) 7-5, 2-0, unfinished

Doubles competition
1. Ilia Snitari/Arda Karakas (UNLVMT) def. Giovanni Branchetti/Jay Fairclough (GONZ) 7-6 (7-5)
2. Illia Maksymchuk/Marko Maksimovic (UNLVMT) def. Oscar Rashed/Nicholas Reeves (GONZ) 7-6 (7-5)
3. Diego Herrera/Gus Krauel (GONZ) def. Michael Kouame/Taiyo Hirano (UNLVMT) 6-4

Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (5,1,2)

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Players Mentioned

Taiyo Hirano

Vitaliy Horovoy

Arda Karakas

Michael Kouame

Marko Maksimovic

Illia Maksymchuk

Ilia Snitari

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