Jung Loses in Third Set at NCAA Second Round
5/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
PALO ALTO, Calif. ?? Alabama's Joseph Jung took the 2005 NCAA Runner-up down to the wire Thursday in second round action at the NCAA Championships, but came up just short in the end as San Diego's Pierrick Ysern pulled out the win, 6-4, 6-7, 6-4.
In typical Jung fashion, the match came down to a third and deciding set. Entering Thursday's match he had played 17 three-set matches on the year, posting a 13-4 record. So when Jung won a crucial second-set tiebreaker he and head coach Billy Pate had reason to believe he could pull it out.
But Ysern stormed out of the gates in the final set to take a 5-2 lead. That's when Jung mounted a comeback that he nearly completed. He was able to break serve and then hold his own serve in consecutive games to bring the set to 5-4. Jung then held break-point, but Ysern fired a winner down the line and eventually held serve to win the match.
"It was a great match," Alabama head coach Billy Pate said. "Joe played well and he had a good season and we're certainly looking forward to him returning next year for his senior season."
Jung closes his season at 21-16, his third straight 20-win season, a first for any Alabama player. For complete NCAA Championship results visit www.gostanford.com.
