TCU
#7 Texas A&M
TCU Captures 4-3 Win Over Aggies
3/28/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Photo by Sarah Lane, Texas A&M Athletics
FORT WORTH, Texas – Facing its second top 15 opponent in a row, the No. 3 TCU men's tennis team mounted a comeback as Jerry Lopez won a 12-10 tiebreaker in the third set on the final court to clinch a 4-3 victory over No. 7 Texas A&M on Monday night at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center in College Station, Texas.
The 10th straight win of the season for the Horned Frogs (15-2) would not come easy as the Aggies (20-6) secured the doubles point after a tiebreaker on court one to take the early 1-0 lead. TCU did not falter as Trevor Johnson evened out the match with a 6-4, 6-3 win at the No. 6 position. No. 54 Guillermo Nuñez followed with win No. 18 of the season and his seventh over a ranked foe with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over No. 90 Jordi Arconada to give the Frogs a 2-1 advantage.
Texas A&M bounced back with two straight set victories on courts two and four to reclaim the lead before No. 3 Cameron Norrie downed No. 45 Shane Vinsant, 7-6(5), 6-3, for his 12th win over a ranked opponent to bring the match back to even at 3-3. All attention turned to Lopez's court as the junior battled point-for-point with Max Lunkin to send the match into a tiebreaker in the third set. Tied 10-10, Lunkin put a forehand and then a backhand into the net as Lopez claimed the 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (10) win and recorded his team-best 19th win this season.
Quotes of the Match
Head Coach David Roditi
"That was an amazing college tennis match that I wish every Aggie and every Horned Frog could have witnessed. It had it all and even more drama than any of us could handle. This is why these guys work so hard for that feeling. Texas A&M had some guys that needed to step up and they did. They had players compete very well at some matches that typically don't play or play lower. I am proud of Jerry (Lopez) for his resilience and the way he handled the whole situation. Aggie fans did their job and Jerry had the serenity to continue focusing on the next point.
"Anytime you have a road match versus a top 10 team like Texas A&M you need your players to rise to the occasion and our guys did just that. The best part is that there is still more room for improvement on this team and when we clean a few things up, we will hit another level. Trevor (Johnson), Cameron (Norrie) and Guillermo (Nuñez) did a very good job getting those first three points in straight sets and they gave Jerry a chance to clinch. Now we have a really tough doubleheader against a confident Rice team and local rival UT Arlington on Friday."
Match Results
TCU vs Texas A&M
Mar 28, 2016 at College Station, TX
(George P. Mitchell Tennis Center)
#3 TCU 4, #7 Texas A&M 3
Singles competition
1. #3 Cameron Norrie (TCU) def. #45 Shane Vinsant (TAMU) 7-6 (7-5), 6-3
2. #18 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. #15 Alex Rybakov (TCU) 6-3, 6-4
3. #54 Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) def. #90 Jordi Arconada (TAMU) 6-4, 6-4
4. Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. #103 Eduardo Nava (TCU) 6-3, 6-4
5. Jerry Lopez (TCU) def. Max Lunkin (TAMU) 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (12-10)
6. Trevor Johnson (TCU) def. Aleksandre Bakshi (TAMU) 6-4, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. Aleksandre Bakshi/Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. #67 Hudson Blake/Reese Stalder (TCU) 7-6 (7-3)
2. Max Lunkin/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. Trevor Johnson/Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) 6-2
3. Alex Rybakov/Cameron Norrie (TCU) def. Jordi Arconada/Shane Vinsant (TAMU) 7-5
Match Notes:
TCU 15-2; National ranking #3
Texas A&M 20-6; National ranking #7
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (6,3,4,2,1,5)
T-3:15 A-288
Up Next
TCU will be back at action at home at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center for the next five straight competitions. The Frogs will start with a doubleheader on Friday, April 1 against Rice at Noon and UT Arlington at 5:30 p.m. The team will then wrap-up its nonconference slate against SMU (April 6), before kicking off Big 12 play with Oklahoma (April 8) and Oklahoma State (April 10).
Players Mentioned
