UCLA and Ohio State both won outright regular season conference titles on Friday night with the Bruins defeating crosstown rival No. 6 USC 4-1 while the Buckeyes beat up No. 21 Northwestern 6-1. UCLA jumped out to the early 1-0 lead after claiming the doubles point with wins at No. 1 and No. 2 and then the Bruins added four first sets in singles. Evan Zhu and Logan Staggs won in straight sets at No. 3 and No. 4 to make it 3-0 but USC would get on the board with a straight set win from Thibault Forget at No. 5. USC was getting close to a win at No. 6 and had an early break lead in the third at No. 1 but UCLA’s Martin Redlicki would squash any hopes of a comeback after he closed out Nick Crystal 7-6, 7-6 at No. 2. UCLA and USC will both gets byes into the semifinals of the Pac-12 Tournament which begins on Wednesday in Ojai.
And that’s it! Redlicki defeats Crystal 7-6(9), 7-6(2) and UCLA defeats USC, 4-1!!! pic.twitter.com/VKbtupXMwM
— UCLA Men’s Tennis (@uclatennis) April 22, 2017
Apr 21, 2017 at Los Angeles, CA (Sunset Canyon Tennis Courts)
Doubles competition
1. #12 Redlicki/Zhu (UCLA) def. #10 Holt/R. Smith (USC) 6-3
2. A. Rapp/Di Giulio (UCLA) def. #85 Crystal/Verboven (USC) 6-3
3. Bellamy/Jaede (USC) def. Cressy/Goldberg (UCLA) 6-2
Singles competition
1. #22 Brandon Holt (USC) vs. #21 Gage Brymer (UCLA) 2-6, 7-5, *1-0, unfinished
2. #57 Martin Redlicki (UCLA) def. Nick Crystal (USC) 7-6 (11-9), 7-6 (7-2)
3. Evan Zhu (UCLA) def. #79 Logan Smith (USC) 6-2, 6-4
4. Logan Staggs (UCLA) def. Jack Jaede (USC) 6-3, 6-4
5. Thibault Forget (USC) def. Austin Rapp (UCLA) 6-2, 6-4
6. Riley Smith (USC) vs. Joseph Di Giulio (UCLA) 7-5, 6-6, unfinished
Match Notes:
USC 22-5; National ranking #6
UCLA 18-4; National ranking #8
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (3,4,5,2)
T-2:25
OSU is just the 7th program in any sport to win ???????????? straight Big Ten titles. #GoBucks
— Ohio State M Tennis (@OhioState_MTEN) April 22, 2017
#2 Ohio State 6, #21 Northwestern 1
Apr 21, 2017 at Evanston, lll.(Combe Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. #1 Mikael Torpegaard (OHIOST) def. #39 Strong Kirchheimer (NU) 6-4, 6-0
2. #75 JJ Wolf (OHIOST) def. #65 Konrad Zieba (NU) 6-4, 6-2
3. #8 Hugo Di Feo (OHIOST) def. Sam Shropshire (NU) 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-3), 1-0 (10-7)
4. Dominik Stary (NU) def. Kyle Seelig (OHIOST) 6-4, 5-7, 1-0 (11-9)
5. Martin Joyce (OHIOST) def. Ben Vandixhorn (NU) 6-4, 7-5
6. #120 Herkko Pollanen (OHIOST) def. Jason Seidman (NU) 6-1, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. #13 Mikael Torpegaard/Herkko Pollanen (OHIOST) def. #68 Konrad Zieba/Sam Shropshire (NU) 6-4
2. #70 Strong Kirchheimer/Dominik Stary (NU) vs. #27 Martin Joyce/Hugo Di Feo (OHIOST) 4-3, unfinished
3. JJ Wolf/Hunter Tubert (OHIOST) def. Chris Ephron/Michael Lorenzini (NU) 6-3
Match Notes:
Ohio State 25-3, 10-0; National ranking #2
Northwestern 18-9, 6-4; National ranking #21
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (2,1,6,5,4,3)
Official: John Coleman
T-2:54 A-421
UNC 4 GT 1 R Kelly clinches it 3-6, 6-2, 6-3; the 3rd time UNC has rallied to win vs a top 20 team after losing the dbls pt
— UNC Men’s Tennis (@carolinatennis) April 21, 2017
North Carolina dropped the doubles point against No. 20 Georgia Tech but came back in singles and picked up the four wins it needed with Robert Kelly clinching the win at No. 3.
#12 North Carolina 4, #20 Georgia Tech 3
Apr 21, 2017 at Atlanta, Ga. (Ken Byers Tennis Complex)
Singles competition
1. #7 Christopher Eubanks (GT) def. #19 Ronnie Schneider (NC) 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-5)
2. #36 William Blumberg (NC) def. #105 Carlos Benito (GT) 6-3, 6-1
3. #110 Robert Kelly (NC) def. Carlos Divar (GT) 3-6, 6-2, 6-3
4. Jack Murray (NC) def. Daniel Yun (GT) 7-5, 6-2
5. Blaine Boyden (NC) def. Cole Fiegel (GT) 6-3, 6-3
6. Chris Yun (GT) def. Anu Kodali (NC) 6-4, 1-6, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. #69 Carlos Benito/Christopher Eubanks (GT) def. #5 William Blumberg/Robert Kelly (NC) 6-3
2. Cole Fiegel/Carlos Divar (GT) def. Jack Murray/Simon Soendergaard (NC) 6-3
3. Daniel Yun/Elijah Melendez (GT) def. Anu Kodola/Ronnie Schneider (NC) 5-4
Match Notes:
North Carolina 22-3, 9-2 ACC; National ranking #12
Georgia Tech 15-6, 7-4 ACC; National ranking #20
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (2,4,5,3,6,1)
A-500
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Conference Tournament Roundup
SEC (Women) – Three of the top four seeds (#1 Vanderbilt/#3 Florida/#4 South Carolina) advanced to the semifinals with #10 Auburn crashing the party after a 4-1 win over #2 Georgia. Auburn will play Florida in the first semifinals with host Vanderbilt playing South Carolina in the second.
#12 Auburn 4, #4 Georgia 1
Apr 21, 2017 at Nashville, Tenn. (Currey Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. #21 Ellen Perez (UGA) def. #34 Andie Dikosavljevic (AU) 6-4, 6-1
2. #14 Elena Christofi (UGA) vs. #26 Allie Michaud (AU) 6-2, 4-6, 2-1, unfinished
3. #124 Taylor Russo (AU) def. #61 Kennedy Shaffer (UGA) 6-4, 6-2
4. Georgie Axon (AU) def. #63 Caroline Brinson (UGA) 6-4, 6-3
5. Marta Gonzalez (UGA) vs. Roos van der Zwaan (AU) 6-4, 5-4, unfinished
6. Alannah Griffin (AU) def. Mariana Gould (UGA) 7-5, 6-0
Doubles competition
1. #18 Taylor Russo/Allie Michaud (AU) def. #4 Caroline Brinson/Ellen Perez (UGA) 6-3
2. #34 Elena Christofi/Kennedy Shaffer (UGA) def. Andie Dikosavljevic/Alannah Griffin (AU) 6-2
3. #46 Georgie Axon/Caroline Turner (AU) def. Mariana Gould/Marta Gonzalez (UGA) 6-1
Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (1,3,4,6)
Quote from Auburn’s recap
This was a huge match for us,” Auburn head coach Lauren Spencer said. “This was a complete team win today and I am extremely proud of the effort we gave from start to finish. Georgia was a team we really wanted another shot at after losing to them in the regular season. We came out and played to win and the girls took care of business. We will have to come out strong again tomorrow against a strong Florida team.”
American – The top four seeds advanced to the semifinals with UCF and Memphis tested the most. UCF dropped the doubles point to Tulsa but came back in singles with Korey Lovett and Chris Barrus putting the Knights over the top. Memphis got past SMU 4-2 with the Mustangs playing without Hunter Johnson (#2 singles/#2 doubles).
#3 UCF 4, #6 Tulsa 2
April 21, 2017 at Orlando, FL
Doubles Competition (Order of Finish: (1,3,2)
1. Majed Kilani/Or Ram-Harel (Tulsa) def. Harrison Richmond/Mariano Porter (UCF), 6-1
2. Dominic Bechard/Okkie Kellerman (Tulsa) def. Korey Lovett/Danny Kerznerman (UCF), 6-4
3. Kalman Boybd/Chris Barrus (UCF) def. Jarod Hing/Daniel Santos (Tulsa), 6-3
Singles Competition (Order of Finish: 3,6,4,1,5)
1. Korey Lovett (UCF) def. Or Ram-Harel (Tulsa), 6-2,4-6,6-2
2. Danny Kerznerman (UCF) vs. Majed Kilani (Tulsa), 3-6, 7-5, unfinished
3. Harrison Richmond (UCF) def. Jarod Hing (Tulsa), 6-3,6-0
4. Dominic Bechard (Tulsa) def. Mariano Porter (UCF), 6-3,6-4
5. Chris Barrus (UCF) def. Daniel Santos (Tulsa), 7-5,6-3
6. Kalman Boyd (UCF) def. Mitchell Pritchard (Tulsa), 6-3, 6-4
Match Notes
Team Records: UCF (15-5), Tulsa (10-17)
#5 Memphis 4, #4 SMU 2
April 21, 2017 at Orlando, FL
Doubles Competition (Order of Finish: (3, 1, 2)
1. Markus Kerner/Yates Johnson (SMU) def Kai Lemke/Andrew Watson (Memphis), 6-4
2. Felix Rauch/Ryan Peniston (Memphis) def. Ronald Slobodchikov/Samm Butler (SMU), 7-6 (4)
3. Jan Pallares/Matthew Story (Memphis) def. Julio Olaya/Tony Russell (SMU), 6-3
Singles Competition (Order of Finish: 3,1,5,4,6)
1. Ronald Slobodchikov (SMU) def. Ryan Peniston (Memphis) 6-4, 6-1
2. Samm Butler (SMU) vs. Andrew Watson (Memphis) unfinished
3. Kai Lemke (Memphis) def. Markus Kerner (SMU), 6-0, 6-1
4. Tony Russell (SMU) def. Chris Patzanovsky (Memphis), 3-6, 6-3, 6-0
5. Jan Pallares (Memphis) def. Yates Johnson (SMU), 7-6 (4),6-3
6. Felix Rauch (Memphis) def. Juilo Olaya (SMU), 7-5, 6-7 (7), 6-3
Match Notes
Team Records: Memphis (15-7), SMU (13-11)
Conference USA – Three of the top four seeds advanced to the semifinals with the one seeding upset coming in the second match of the day as the No. 6 seed Southern Miss came back from 3-2 down to Florida Atlantic 4-3. All four matches were played indoors due to rain and for some like FAU that meant playing inside for the first time all year.
Southern Miss was dominant in doubles with the Golden Eagles picking up a pair of 6-1 wins at No. 1 and No. 2 to secure the early 1-0 lead. After FAU went ahead 3-2, Teeradon Tortrakul tied it up with a straight set win at No. 3. Tortrakul served for the match up 6-5 in the second and had two match points at 40/30 but FAU’s Anthony Schohn got the break to force a tiebreak. Tortrakul was running on fumes in the tiebreak (didn’t go after several shots) and quickly fell behind 6-1 but Schohn eased up a bit and instead of putting it away he was hoping that Tortrakul would give away. Tortrakul found a second wind and started chipping away at the lead and before you knew he had won seven straight points to close it out 7-6(5), 7-6(6).
FAU’s Ignacio Jimenez was just two points away from clinching the win at No. 6 when he served at 6-6 in the second set tiebreak. Jimenez sent a backhand long about 15 shots into the rally and then USM’s Rakshit Rishi hit a service winner to force a third set. Rishi pulled away in the third set and won it 2-6, 7-6, 6-1 to send Southern Miss to the semifinals where they’ll face the No. 2 seed Old Dominion. Below is some match footage that I shot during the match – most points are game/break points.
No. 6 Southern Miss 4, No. 3 Florida Atlantic 3
4/21/2017 at Murfreesboro, Tenn (Adams Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. #124 Andrei M-Kougoucheff (FAUM) def. Wen-Po Tseng (USM) 6-3, 6-4
2. Remi Chancerel (FAUM) def. Daniel Merker (USM) 6-4, 6-2
3. Teeradon Tortrakul (USM) def. Anthony Schohn (FAUM) 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (8-6)
4. Chao-Yu Huang (USM) def. Felipe Frias (FAUM) 6-1, 6-2
5. Arthur Stefani (FAUM) def. Jorman Reyes (USM) 0-6, 6-3, 6-2
6. Rakshit Rishi (USM) def. Ignacio Jimenez (FAUM) 2-6, 7-6 (8-6), 6-1
Doubles competition
1. Daniel Merker/Jorman Reyes (USM) def. Andrei M-Kougoucheff/Remi Chancerel (FAUM) 6-1
2. Wen-Po Tseng/Chao-Yu Huang (USM) def. Felipe Frias/Arthur Stefani (FAUM) 6-1
3. Anthony Schohn/Alexander Gitin (FAUM) vs. Teeradon Tortrakul/Rakshit Rishi (USM) 4-2, unfinished
Match Notes:
No. 6 Southern Miss 21-4
No. 3 Florida Atlantic 17-7
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (4,2,1,5,3,6)
C-USA Championship Quarterfinals – Match 2
Official: Ted Mason T-3:14 A-74
??: “Anything can happen in a match so you just have to be very alert, you have to trust yourself and trust your game.” –@SouthernMissMTN pic.twitter.com/E8Pclw3u2E
— Conference USA (@Conference_USA) April 21, 2017
In the opening match of the day in Murfreesboro it was the No. 2 seed Old Dominion coming back from dropping the doubles point to defeat No. 7 UAB 4-2. UAB’s No. 2 doubles team of Eric Komati and Anru Fourie served for the match up 5-4 but got broke however they broke right back for 6-5. ODU’s Aziz Kijametovic and Jose Nunez Navarro broke back, after fighting off two match points, to force a tiebreak and then in the tiebreak they were serving up 4-3 but wouldn’t win another point as UAB took it 7-4.
ODU took its first lead of the day after Michael Weindl and Javier Jover Maestre won in straight sets at No. 2 and No. 3 and then Jacob Nicolussi made it 3-1 with a straight set win at No. 4. UAB’s Kenton Parton won in straight sets at No. 6 to bring the Blazers to within 3-2 but ODU’s Adam Moundir would clinch the match with a 7-6, 2-6, 6-2 win at No. 1. Below are some highlights:
No. 2 Old Dominion 4, No. 7 UAB 2
4/21/2017 at Murfreesboro, Tenn (Adams Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. #50 Adam Moundir (ODU) def. Tim Dollman (UAB) 7-6 (7-4), 2-6, 6-2
2. Michael Weindl (ODU) def. Eric Komati (UAB) 7-5, 6-2
3. Javier Jover Maestre (ODU) def. Stefan Gonzalez (UAB) 6-2, 6-3
4. Jacob Nicolussi (ODU) def. Nikolai Manchev (UAB) 6-4, 6-3
5. Aziz Kijametovic (ODU) vs. Anru Fourie (UAB) 6-3, 3-6, 3-2, unfinished
6. Kenton Parton (UAB) def. Justin Herrera (ODU) 6-3, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. Adam Moundir/Javier Jover Maestre (ODU) vs. Tim Dollman/Stefan Gonzalez (UAB) 6-6 (5-2), unfinished
2. Eric Komati/Anru Fourie (UAB) def. Aziz Kijametovic/Jose Nunez Navarro (ODU) 7-6 (7-4)
3. Kenton Parton/Nikolai Manchev (UAB) def. Michael Weindl/Jacob Nicolussi (ODU) 6-1
Match Notes:
No. 7 UAB 10-12
No. 2 Old Dominion 18-5
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (3,2,4,6,1)
C-USA Championship Quarterfinals – Match 1
Official: Ted Mason T-2:43 A-65
??: “We emphasize that we are one team, we win together and we lose as a team. As a collective group, we did well today.” –@ODUMensTennis pic.twitter.com/hRryHztb7x
— Conference USA (@Conference_USA) April 21, 2017
The final two matches of the day weren’t as close as #4 Middle Tennessee ran over #5 Charlotte 4-0 and then the top seed Rice was just too much for UTSA with the Owls winning 4-0. Highlights from those matches are available on my YouTube page.
Full conference tournament results, draws, and links are available under my events tab. If you want to see how these results effected next week’s rankings check out my rankings tab which has real-time rankings (available for CTT subscribers)
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