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Men's Tennis Downs Notre Dame 4-2 to Open National Team Indoors
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Feb. 14, 2014
HOUSTON – The top-ranked Virginia men’s tennis team advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2014 ITA National Team Indoor Championships with a 4-2 victory over No. 16 Notre Dame at the Galleria Tennis and Athletic Club. The Cavaliers (5-0) rallied from losing the doubles point to win four singles matches and record the victory.
The Cavaliers will play No. 11 California in the quarterfinals on Saturday. Match time is 3 p.m. at the Downtown Club at the Met.
“It has been a while since we competed in a live match situation,” said head coach Brian Boland. “I thought the guys handled it well against a really good Notre Dame team. We will be much better tomorrow. I always feel like the first match at this tournament is the toughest. I am proud of guys and I know we will be ready to go tomorrow.”
The Cavaliers fell behind early in the match as the Irish took the doubles point. It was the first time this season Virginia has dropped the opening point of a match. Mac Styslinger (Birmingham, Ala.) and Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (Charlotte, N.C.) gave Virginia an early edge with a 6-4 win at No. 3 over Ryan Bandy and Eric Schnurrenberger. Notre Dame drew even with a win at No. 2, where Josh Hagar and Billy Pecor downed Mitchell Frank (Annandale, Va.) and Luca Corinteli (Alexandria, Va.) 6-4. The deciding match at No. 1 came down to a tiebreak where Greg Andrews and Alex Lawson edged Alex Domijan (Wesley Chapel, Fla.) and Justin Shane (Falls Church, Va.) 6-5(3) to give Notre Dame a 1-0 lead in the match.
“We didn’t finish some points we should have in doubles,” said Boland. “We had match point at No. 1 to close out the doubles point and it got away from us. With this format, it is going to be close and come down to an inch here or there. One point can make the difference and we had it on our racquet. Give Notre Dame credit for making the plays they needed.”
Virginia rallied in singles, winning four of the six first sets. Jordan Daigle (Lafayette, La.) drew the Cavaliers even in the match as he posted a 6-1, 6-2 win at No. 6 over Schnurrenberger. Frank gave Virginia a 2-1 lead with his 6-3, 6-3 victory at No. 1 over Andrews. The other four matches all went to a decisive third set. Shane had a dominant final set at No. 3, defeating Bandy 6-3, 3-6 6-0 to extend the lead to 3-1. Notre Dame posted its only singles win at No. 4 where Hagar rallied for a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 win over Styslinger. Seconds later, Domijan closed out a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 win at No. 2 over Quentin Monaghan to clinch the victory for the Cavaliers.
“The guys rebounded pretty well in singles,” said Boland. “We mixed up the lineup and had a couple of first years at No. 5 and 6 that were playing their first match at a national tournament and I was pleased with how they handled the stage. Our seniors came through with some three-set wins when we needed them to step up.”
The win was Virginia’s 35th consecutive win, the longest active streak in the nation and one win shy of the 36-match school-record win streak set in 2010. The win was also the Cavaliers’ 108th consecutive win against ACC competition.
#1 VIRGINIA 4, #16 NOTRE DAME 2
Doubles:
1. . #17 Andrews/Lawson (ND) def. Domijan/J.Shane (UVa) 6-5(3)
2. #46 Hagar/Pecor (ND) def. Frank/Corinteli (UVa) 6-4
3. Styslinger/Kwiatkowski (UVa) def. Bandy/Schnurrenberger (ND) 6-4
Order of Finish: 3,2,1
Singles:
1. #3 Mitchell Frank (UVa) def. #37 Greg Andrews (ND) 6-3, 6-3
2. Alex Domijan (UVa) def. Quentin Monaghan (ND) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
3. Justin Shane (UVa) def. #121 Ryan Bandy (ND) 6-3, 3-6, 6-0
4. Josh Hagar (ND) def. #61 Mac Styslinger (UVa) 3-6, 6-1, 6-2
5. Thai-Son Kwiatkowski (UVa) vs. Eddy Covalschi (ND) 5-6(7), 6-3, 1-1 DNF
6. #62 Jordan Daigle (UVa) def. Eric Schnurrenberger (ND) 6-1, 6-2
Order of Finish: 6,1,3,4,2