The 2016 season is officially underway and it didn’t take long to get our first upset as #29 Tulsa came storming back from 3-1 down to stun #21 Cal 4-3. Tulsa made 3 roster additions this week and all 3 newcomers played tonight but it was the experienced veterans that came through with the match on the line.
Tulsa got things started on the right foot by taking the doubles point with 6-4 wins at #1 and #3 but Cal still had to feel fairly confident going into singles with 5 of its 6 starters ranked in the ITA Top 90. Each team picked up three first sets and while Cal’s Filip Bergevi, Billy Griffith, and Oskar Wikberg finished in straight sets only one of Tulsa’s guys was able to do the same. Tulsa’s Or Ram-Harel served for the match at #1 singles leading #3 Andre Goransson 7-6, 5-4 but he fell behind 30-40 after Goransson punished a second serve with a forehand winner. Goransson would get another look at a second serve but this time all he could do was float a backhand return long which brought up the deciding point at 40-all (no-ad). Ram-Harel stayed in control on the next point and closed out Goransson which gave Tulsa its first singles point and second of the match to cut Cal’s lead to 3-2.
Despite the win by Ram-Harel it looked like it was going to be all for naught because Cal’s Florian Lakat and J.T. Nishimura had taken their respective second sets at #2 and #6 and were up breaks deep in the third set as well.
Lakat had a 5-3 lead on Carlos Bautista at #2 but the Tulsa senior dug in and held easily to make it 5-4. Bautista went up 15-30 on the Lakat serve after hitting a nice backhand overhead but Lakat followed that up by hitting a forehand winner down the line to even it at 30-all. A huge Bautista forehand would force a Lakat backhand error to make it 30-40 and then Bautista would get a look at a second serve but he chipped the return long to even it at 40-all. So we had a match point/break point situation and once again Bautista would get a look at a second serve. Just as he had done on the previous point Bautista chipped the return but this time instead of the ball going long it hit the tape and dribbled over the net for an improbable winner. Lakat thought he had the match won as Bautista’s chip floated towards the net and couldn’t believe it when it rolled over. That one point was basically the match because Bautista would take 8 of the next 9 points to close out the 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 come from behind win and tie the overall score at 3-3.
All attention turned to #6 singles as Cal’s J.T. Nishimura was trying to close out Tulsa’s Mitchell Pritchard after going up 4-2 in the third. Both Nishimura and Pritchard had each been in high pressure situations before with Nishimura playing in the deciding match against Stanford last season on February 21st and Pritchard in the decider against #1 USC on February 28th. Nishimura led Stanford’s Maciek Romanowicz 5-2 in the third and had a few match points but ended up losing the final 5 games to lose 7-5. Pritchard on the hand won his match over USC’s Rob Bellamy in a third set tiebreak to clinch one of the biggest upsets in college tennis history. So, how do you think this one finished?
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| Mitchell Pritchard (Pic from Tulsa) |
Unfortunately for Nishimura and fortunately for Pritchard the script in this one ended with the same outcome. Pritchard came back from 2-4 down to go up 5-4 and then had 2 match points on the Nishimura serve but Nishimura fought back to hold and even it at 5-all. Pritchard’s next service game came down to the deciding point (40-all) and he hit a shot that looked like it missed the sideline by a good few inches but after Nishimura called it out Pritchard appealed the call and the chair unbelievably overturned it to give Pritchard the hold and 6-5 lead. I was watching it on the live stream and it looked to me like it was clearly out but in this instance the only opinion that mattered was the chairs. Instead of serving for the match, Nishimura was now serving to stay in it but he didn’t let the moment get to him and hung tough and held to force a match deciding third set tiebreak.
Nishimura raced out to a 3-0* lead in the breaker before Pritchard hit a pair of service winners to trim it to *3-2. Nishimura would push a backhand wide on the next point to make it 3-all at the changeover but he’d compose himself and hit a service winner on the next point to go back up 4-3*. Pritchard would even it at 4-all after Nishimura pushed a lazy forehand wide on about the 20th shot of the rally and then Pritchard would follow that up with a huge serve down the T that Nishimura could barely get a frame on. Nishimura was now serving at *4-5 and it would soon be *4-6 after Pritchard got control of the point and ultimately ended it with a forehand winner down the line. After Nishimura missed his first serve by a mile, Pritchard got a little too aggressive on the second serve and his return caught the tape and kicked back to make it 5-6*. Pritchard now had match point on his serve and the point wouldn’t last long as Nishimura sailed a backhand long and that was it – Tulsa wins it 4-3.
Note: Pritchard’s win over Nishimura was a Universal Tennis Rating upset since Nishimura’s UTR was 1.04 higher than Pritchard’s UTR.
#29 Tulsa 4, #21 Cal 3
Jan. 15, 2016 at Tulsa, Oklahoma (Michael D. Case Tennis Center
Doubles Competition
1. McCloskey/Kirby (TU) def. #59 Goransson/Lakat (Cal) 6-4
2. Bergevi/Engsted (Cal) def. O. Kellerman/F. Kellerman (TU) 6-2
3. Gonzalez/Bautista (TU) def. Griffith/Nishimura (Cal) 6-4
Singles Competition
1. #51 Or Ram-Harel (TU 13.91) def. #3 Andre Goransson (Cal 14.35) 7-6, 6-4
2. Carlos Bautista (TU 13.33) def. #30 Florian Lakat (Cal 13.88) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
3. #86 Filip Bergevi (Cal 13.96) def. Matt Kirby (TU 12.69) 6-1, 6-2
4. #39 Billy Griffith (Cal 13.77) def. Majed Kilani (TU 13.52) 6-4, 6-3
5. #54 Oskar Wikberg (Cal 13.38) def. Francois Kellerman (TU 12.99) 6-3, 6-0
6. Mitchell Pritchard (TU 12.54) def. J.T. Nishimura (Cal 13.58) 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(5)
Order of Finish: (3,5,4,1,2,6)
Quotes from Tulsa head coach Vince Westbrook via Tulsa’s recap:
“Cal. is going to be the favorite in the northern part of the Pac-12, and they are one of the best teams in the country,” said Westbrook. “Ram-Harel goes out and beats the No. 3 player in the country, and Bautista goes out and beats the No. 30 player in the country. Our three and four spots weren’t very good, but I don’t think that our freshmen have played in an environment like this. Our doubles was awesome, and it came down to our upperclassmen. I think that we are at about 60% or 70% of what we can do, but it’s going to be a puzzle putting the pieces together against the right opponents. “
“Cal. is going to be the favorite in the northern part of the Pac-12, and they are one of the best teams in the country,” said Westbrook. “Ram-Harel goes out and beats the No. 3 player in the country, and Bautista goes out and beats the No. 30 player in the country. Our three and four spots weren’t very good, but I don’t think that our freshmen have played in an environment like this. Our doubles was awesome, and it came down to our upperclassmen. I think that we are at about 60% or 70% of what we can do, but it’s going to be a puzzle putting the pieces together against the right opponents. “
Quote from Cal head coach Peter Wright via Cal’s recap:
“We have to do a better job of being disciplined, Cal head coach Peter Wright said. “Today we let some great opportunities get away from us, and tip your hat to Tulsa. They played well at the end of the matches.
“We have to do a better job of being disciplined, Cal head coach Peter Wright said. “Today we let some great opportunities get away from us, and tip your hat to Tulsa. They played well at the end of the matches.
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Louisville got off to a slow start at home against Troy by dropping the doubles point but they turned up the heat in singles and picked up straight set wins at #2, #4, #5, and #6 to win it going away 4-1. Troy’s #1 Hassan Ndayishimiye (13.94) didn’t play in this one but from looking at the scores I’m not sure it would have made a difference.
#36 Louisville 4, #63 Troy 1
Jan 15, 2016 at Louisville, Ky. (Bass-Rudd Tennis Center)
Singles Competition
1. #108 Alex Gornet (LOU 13.12) vs. Daniel Bustamante (TROY 12.48) 6-2, 4-6, 3-1, unf
2. Jeffrey Brown (LOU 13.02) def. Andy Lau (TROY 12.20) 6-0, 6-4
3. Giovani Samaha (TROY 13.02) vs. Brandon Lancaster (LOU 13.08) 6-4, 6-6, unf
4. Sean Donohue (LOU 12.42) def. F. Mansson (TROY 12.23/30%) 7-5, 6-3
5. Courtney Lock (LOU 11.98) def. Pablo Moreno (TROY 12.87) 6-0, 6-4
6. Christian Haushammer (LOU 12.22) def. Mustapha Belcora (TROY 13.28/10%) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles Competition
1. #57 Jeffrey Brown/Alex Gornet (LOU) def. Andre Baldo/F. Mansson (TROY) 6-3
2. Andy Lau/Giovani Samaha (TROY) def. Courtney Lock/George Hedley (LOU) 6-3
3. Pablo Moreno/Mustapha Belcora (TROY) def. Sean Donohue/Carlos Longhi Neto (LOU) 6-3
Match Notes
Troy 0-1; National ranking #63
Louisville 1-0; National ranking #36
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (2,6,5,4)
T-2:20 A-79
Quote from Louisville’s Rex Ecarma via their recap
“Troy is going for its third straight conference championship this year,” said UofL head coach Rex Ecarma. “That team returned most of its starters from last year and will most likely be playing in its third straight NCAA tournament. We have five out of six new starters this year honestly this is the most inexperienced team I’ve ever had in 26 seasons. For us to flip it after losing the doubles point was something that really means a lot to me and the team. It showed that we could get down against a veteran team and beat them so that was special.”
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The final match of the night was a classic – #54 UC Santa Barbara went up to the Emerald City and knocked off #62 Washington 4-3. Now this definitely isn’t considered an upset by ranking but there were many, me included, that thought Washington would pull through at home.
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| Nathan Eshmade (Pic from UCSB) |
I was watching the end of the Tulsa/Cal match so I didn’t pick this one up until the tail end but the one that thing that stood out to me was how aggressively Nathan Eshmade was playing for UCSB at #2. He was frequently serving and volleying and for a guy that’s 6’3″ he was getting to the net extremely quickly. When he was receiving he was pushing Hakak all over the court and finishing points at the first opportunity. It’s a very nice win for UCSB but they don’t have long to savor it because they’ve got to play Texas tomorrow afternoon.
#54 UC Santa Barbara 4, #62
Jan 15, 2016 at Seattle, WA. (Nordstrom Tennis Center )
Singles Competition
1. #84 Mitch Stewart (UW 13.89) def. Morgan Mays (UCSB 13.43) 6-1, 6-2
2. Nathan Eshmade (UCSB 13.12) def. #122 Gal Hakak (UW 13.34) 6-2, 6-7(7), 6-1
3. #121 Jake Douglas (UW 13.26) def. Nicolas De Alboran Moreno (UCSB 13.63) 6-2, 3-6, 6-1
4. Enzo Sommer (UW 13.48) def. Cody Rakela (UCSB 12.70) 6-4, 6-2
5. Oliver Sec (USCB 13.10) def. Joao Barra (UW 12.72) 6-1, 1-6, 6-1
6. Anders Holm (UCSB 12.46) def. Rishabh Raman (UW 12.63) 6-4, 6-2
Order of Finish: 1, 4, 6, 5, 3, 2
Doubles Competition
1. Eshmade/Seemann (UCSB) def. Foley/Sommer (UW) 7-6 (8)
2. Douglas/Watanabe (UW) def. Mays/Moreno (UCSB) 6-4
3. Holm/Masciorini (UCSB def. Lam/Stewart (UW) 7-5
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1
Quotes from UCSB’s recap
“The team looked great out there today,” Eshmade said. “We’ve been training really hard and we showed it. We really wanted this win.”
“We’ve really prepared for this season and the guys played some great tennis today,” Head Coach Marty Davis said. “It was a great win for the Gauchos.”
Quotes from Washington’s Matt Anger via UW’s recap
“His opponent was a tough player and Mitch was just suffocating, said head coach Matt Anger. “There were not a lot of opportunities for him and Mitch can do that to guys. I think it was fun for him. He played a good match. Like I said, the other guy is a good player and Mitch was super tonight.
“I take my hat off to their guy, Eshmade there at second singles, said Anger. “In that third set he played lights out tennis and he deserved to win. No complaining on my side other than I would have liked to have gotten that last point.
“There were opportunities all night long for both teams, added Anger. “We played good there at second doubles but losing that tie-breaker at first doubles 8-6, then Gal’s second set tiebreaker. You get one of those two and we are winning a match.
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Texas Tech opened its season with a sweep of Arizona and Pacific in the first of three doubleheaders this weekend. Both Bjorn Thomson and Augusto Stodart made their dual-match debuts with each just arriving on campus a few days ago.
Match Notes
#17 Texas Tech 5, Arizona 0
01/15/16 at Lubbock, Texas (McLeod Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. #8 Felipe Soares (TT 13.99) vs. #37 Naoki Takeda (ARIZ 13.95) 6-2, 2-2, unfinished
2. #35 Alex Sendegeya (TT 14.09) vs. Harry Busby (ARIZ 12.67) 4-6, 4-3, unfinished
3. Hugo Dojas (TT 13.67) def. Trent Botha (ARIZ 13.03) 6-2, 6-1
4. Jolan Cailleau (TT 14.20) def. Jason Jaruvang (ARIZ 12.70) 6-1, 6-4
5. Connor Curry (TT 13.19) def. Oliver Plaskett (ARIZ 12.05) 6-1, 6-0
6. Bjorn Thomson (TT 13.71) def. Shoki Kasahara (ARIZ 12.14) 6-3, 6-0
Doubles competition
1. #2 Hugo Dojas/Felipe Soares (TT) def. Harry Busby/Oliver Plaskett (ARIZ) 6-2
2. Alex Sendegeya/Bjorn Thomson (TT) def. Naoki Takeda/Shoki Kasahara (ARIZ) 6-4
3. Connor Curry/Jolan Cailleau (TT) def. Will Adkisson/Trent Botha (ARIZ) 5-4
Match Notes
Arizona 0-1
Texas Tech 1-0; National ranking #17
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (6,5,3,4)
T-1:47 A-107
T-1:47 A-107
#17 Texas Tech 4, Pacific 2
01/15/16 at Lubbock, Texas (McLeod Texas Center)
Singles competition
1. #8 Felipe Soares (Texas Tech 13.99) defeats Sem Verbeek (Pacific 12.83): 7-6 (4), 6-2
2. #124 Miguel Diaz (Pacific 12.93) defeats #35 Alex Sendegeya (Texas Tech 14.09): 6-2, 6-4
3. Jolan Cailleau (Texas Tech 14.20) defeats Daniel Alameh (Pacific 12.65): 7-5, 6-0
4. Connor Curry (Texas Tech 13.19) defeats Jose Chamba (Pacific 12.78): 6-2, 6-1
5. Bjorn Thomson (Texas Tech 13.71) defeats Kumara Adavelly (Pacific 11.52): 6-1, 6-4
6. Augusto Stodart (Texas Tech 13.22) led Alex Giannini (Pacific 12.25): 3-6, 6-1, 3-2
Doubles competition
1. No. 2 Hugo Dojas/Felipe Soares (Texas Tech) trailed Sem Verbeek/Jose Chamba (Pacific): 6-5
2. Daniel Alameh/Alex Giannini (Pacific) defeats Alex Sendegeya/Bjorn Thomson: 7-5
3. Lance Ngo/Bernardo Oliveria (Pacific) defeats Connor Curry/Augusto Stodart (Texas Tech): 6-2
Pacific 0-2
Texas Tech 2-0; National ranking #17
Order of Finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (5,4,3,2,1)
Quotes from Texas Tech’s recap
“I was impressed with our guys because they took all the right steps toward playing well in the process, Texas Tech head coach Brett Masi said. “Our players stayed the course, took care of business and took it to the opposition.
“In doubles, Pacific came right at us. They’re a well-coached doubles team, Masi said. “I felt like we were a little intimidated by how they were playing. We had some tight first sets in singles, but we made some adjustments. It’s different for each guy. For some, it was about picking up their energy a little bit. For others, it was working on a strategy.
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