University of Louisville
Drake
Men's Tennis Loses to Drake in NCAA First Round
May 08, 2015 | Men's Tennis
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The University of Louisville men's tennis team fell to Drake 4-2 in the first round of the 2015 NCAA team championship. The Cardinals conclude the season with a 23-9 overall record.
"Obviously we are disappointed. Our experiment creating a brand new doubles lineup worked and Michael Lippens did a good job winning in his first time in the lineup in a month," said UofL head coach Rex Ecarma. "Albert was minutes away from winning our third point but we lost two tough three-setters."
In a match that was lengthened by two rain delays, the Cardinals took an early lead by winning at Nos. 1 and 2 doubles. The duo of Albert Wagner and Alex Gornet outlasted Ben Mullis and Allen Salibasic 8-7 (8-6) at the two-spot to give Louisville an early advantage. Sebastian Stiefelmeyer and Van Damrongsri clinched the first point with an 8-6 win against Ben Lott and Bayo Phillips at the top seed.
In singles action, the first of two rain delays suspended the match midway through most of the first sets. When play resumed, the Bulldogs evened the score on court four where Ravi Patel defeated Chris Simich 6-3, 6-1. After another rain delay, the match moved indoors. Once inside the singles matches resumed in progress and Drake's Allen Salibasic completed a 6-1, 6-2 win over fifth-ranked Stiefelmeyer to put the Bulldogs up 2-1.
Michael Lippens knotted the score at 2-2 when he beat Ben Stride 6-2, 7-6 at No. 6.
At the No. 5 spot, Louisville's Van Damrongsri posted a 6-2 first set win over Ben Mullis, but Mullis came back to win the next two sets 6-2, 6-3 to pull the Bulldogs ahead 3-2.
The match was decided on court two where Alex Gornet and Drake's Ben Lott split the first two sets with Gornet taking the first 6-4 and Lott winning the second 6-3 to force a third set. Lott prevailed with a 6-4 win in the third set.
"These guys fought hard and almost came back from deep deficits in the third sets," said Ecarma. "It is the end of a good era in which the seniors have combined for 78 team wins won a conference championship, played in four National Indoor Regionals and three NCAA Regionals."
#33 Drake 4, #32 Louisville 2
May 08, 2015 at Urbana, Ill.
(Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex)
Singles
1. #40 Allen Salibasic (DRAKE) def. #5 Sebastian Stiefelmeyer (LOU) 6-1, 6-2
2. #66 Lott, Ben (DRAKE) def. Alex Gornet (LOU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
3. #91 Albert Wagner (LOU) vs. Frost, Matt (DRAKE) 5-7, 6-3, 3-5, unfinished
4. Patel, Ravi (DRAKE) def. Chris Simich (LOU) 6-3, 6-1
5. Mullis, Ben (DRAKE) def. Van Damrongsri (LOU) 2-6, 6-2, 6-3
6. Michael Lippens (LOU) def. Stride, Ben (DRAKE) 6-2, 7-6
Order of finish:(4,1,6,5,2)
Doubles
1. Sebastian Stiefelmeyer/Van Damrongsri (LOU) def. Lott, Ben/Bayo Phillips (DRAKE) 8-6
2. Albert Wagner/Alex Gornet (LOU) def. Mullis, Ben/Allen Salibasic (DRAKE) 8-7 (8-6)
3. Jeffrey Brown/Chris Simich (LOU) vs. Patel, Ravi/Frost, Matt (DRAKE) 7-7, unfinished
Order of finish: (2,1)
Match Notes:
Drake 25-6; National ranking #33 Louisville 23-9; National ranking #32 Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (4,1,6,5,2) Official: Doug Rice
Players Mentioned
