TCU
Illinois
No. 27 TCU falls to No. 16 Illinois, 5-2
3/12/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
March 12, 2008
URBANA, Ill. - The No. 27 TCU men's tennis team fell by a score of 5-2 to No. 16 Illinois on Wednesday at the Atkins Tennis Center in Urbana, Ill. The Horned Frogs dropped their third straight match to fall to 10-4 this season, while Illinois improved to 9-4 overall."The bottom line today is that we were up in the tiebreaker at the top doubles position and we were serving for the match at No. 3 doubles, and we lost both matches, which really killed us," said TCU head coach Dave Borelli. "We have to find a way to win against these goods teams, and that's just part of growing."
After a TCU loss at the No. 2 doubles position, the Frogs dropped two tight matches at the remaining courts as Illinois clinched the doubles point. The TCU duo of Zach Nichols and Jack Seider fell 9-8(3) to Marc Spicijaric and Connor Roth, while Kriegler Brink and Cosmin Cotet fell just short by a score of 9-8(5) to Illinois' 21st-ranked duo of Brandon Davis and Ruben Gonzales.
The Fighting Illini jumped out in singles play with three victories in straight sets at the top three positions to seal the match.
Illinois went up 5-0 in the match, as Casey Powers dropped a tough 6-2, 0-6, 10-8 decision in the freshman's first contest since Feb. 23.
TCU's Brink and Nichols earned the only singles wins to bring the final score to 5-2. Brink defeated No. 84 Billy Heiser at the No. 4 position by a score of 7-6(2), 6-4 to move to a perfect 13-0 this season. Nichols improved to 12-2 overall with a 6-3, 2-6, 10-7 victory over Waylon Chin at the No. 5 slot.
The Frogs will return home for a Friday contest against No. 22 Wake Forest at 6 p.m. at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center.
No. 16 Illinois (9-4) def. No. 27 TCU (10-4), 5-2
SINGLES
1. No. 14 Ryan Rowe (ILL) def. No. 21 Cosmin Cotet (TCU) 6-2, 6-4
2. No. 92 Ruben Gonzales (ILL) def. Emanu Brighiu (TCU) 6-2, 6-1
3. Marc Spicijaric (ILL) def. No. 115 Adrian Simon (TCU) 6-2, 6-2
4. Kriegler Brink (TCU) def. No. 84 Billy Heiser (ILL) 7-6(2), 6-4
5. No. 122 Zach Nichols (TCU) def. Waylon Chin (ILL) 6-3, 2-6, 10-7
6. Brandon Davis (ILL) def. Casey Powers (TCU) 6-2, 0-6, 10-8
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3*, 6, 5, 4
DOUBLES
1. No. 21 Davis/Gonzales (ILL) def. Brink/Cotet (TCU) 9-8(5)
2. No. 20 Rowe/Heiser (ILL) def. Brighiu/Simon (TCU) 8-3
3. Spicijaric/Roth (ILL) def. Nichols/Seider (TCU) 9-8(3)
Order of Finish: 2, 3*, 1
*Clinching point
Players Mentioned
