Alabama
Vanderbilt University
Alabama Men’s Tennis Falls to Vanderbilt on Friday Night in a Thriller
4/7/2017 8:49:00 PM | Men's Tennis
The Crimson Tide travels to Lexington, Ky., on Sunday, April 9, to take on the Kentucky Wildcats at Noon CT
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Alabama men's tennis team lost a 4-3 thriller to No. 47 Vanderbilt on Friday night at the Currey Tennis Center. With the loss, the Crimson Tide falls to a 9-15 overall record including a 1-9 mark in Southeastern Conference play, while the Commodores improve to 11-12 and 2-8 in league play.
"Definitely a heartbreaker but a valiant fight by our team," said Alabama head coach George Husack. "Zhe got things going for us and is really playing solid ball. What a comeback by Ritchie. He was down a set and break after serving for it twice in the first. He relaxed, dug in and gave us an opportunity to win. Mazen had his chances and I give credit to their player for never relenting."
The Tide displayed a strong performance in doubles, as freshmen Alexey Nesterov and Thibault Cancel collected the first victory of the contest over Panu Virtanen and Pen Binet, 6-2, on court two. Alabama's No. 38 ranked doubles tandem in sophomores Mazen Osama and Spencer Richey clinched the doubles point in a 6-3 decision on the top court over Vanderbilt's No. 59 ranked doubles pair Billy Rowe and Lachlan McPhee, giving the Tide a 1-0 match lead headed into singles.
Vanderbilt responded with three-consecutive wins in straight sets on courts two, three and four to start singles play, giving the Commodores a 3-1 match advantage. Baker Newman defeated Alabama's No. 117 ranked singles player Cancel (No. 2), 6-1, 6-2, before McPhee topped Richey (No. 4), 6-0, 6-3. Rowe registered a 6-1, 6-4 win over Nesterov (No. 3) to give Vanderbilt a two-point match lead at 3-1. Alabama replied with back-to-back wins on courts five and six to equalize the match score at 3-3. Freshman Zhe Zou (No. 5) won in straight sets over Virtanen, 6-2, 6-2, before senior Ritchie Kruunenberg (No. 6) outlasted Alex Ross, 6-7, 6-3, 6-2. With the match point on the line, Daniel Valent overcame the Tide's No. 31 ranked singles player Osama (No. 1), 5-7, 7-5, 7-5, resulting in the final score.
"We are going the right things and will continue to do so," said Husack. "It will only get better because I don't know many teams or organizations that don't turn the corner if they are persistent and passionate while doing things right. We will get there and the process will make us tougher."
The Tide will be back in action on Sunday, April 9, when it travels to Lexington, Ky., to take on the Kentucky Wildcats at Noon CT.
Alabama 3, No. 47 Vanderbilt 4
SINGLES
1. Daniel Valent (Vanderbilt) def. No. 31 Mazen Osama (Alabama) 5-7, 7-5, 7-5
2. Baker Newman (Vanderbilt) def. No. 117 Thibault Cancel (Alabama) 6-1, 6-2
3. Billy Rowe (Vanderbilt) def. Alexey Nesterov (Alabama) 6-1, 6-4
4. Lachlan McPhee (Vanderbilt) def. Spencer Richey (Alabama) 6-0, 6-3
5. Zhe Zhou (Alabama) def. Panu Virtanen (Vanderbilt) 6-2, 6-2
6. Ritchie Kruunenberg (Alabama) def. Alex Ross (Vanderbilt) 6-7, 6-3, 6-2
Order of finish: 2,4,3,5,6,1
DOUBLES
1. No. 38 Spencer Richey/Mazen Osama (Alabama) def. No. 59 Billy Rowe/Lachlan McPhee (Vanderbilt) 6-3
2. Alexey Nesterov/Thibault Cancel (Alabama) def. Panu Virtanen/Pen Binet (Vanderbilt) 6-2
3. Zhe Zou/Ritchie Kruunenberg (Alabma) vs. Daniel Valent/Baker Newman (Vanderbilt) 4-4, DNF
Order of finish: 2,1
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Players Mentioned
