TCU
#41 Stanford
TCU Pulls Off Comeback
3/11/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
FORT WORTH, Texas - Down 3-0 in the match, the No. 31 TCU men's tennis team buckled down and battled back to pull off the 4-3 victory over No. 41 Stanford on Saturday afternoon at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium in Palo Alto, Calif.
After the doubles point was decided on a tiebreaker on the final court in favor of the Cardinal (7-4), the Horned Frogs (7-4) found themselves in a bigger hole as the bottom two singles courts went to Stanford. The deficit did not detour TCU as the top four courts came through as No. 84 Alex Rybakov got things started with a 7-6(5), 6-0 victory on court two to put the Frogs on the board. Rybakov has now won nine straight matches for TCU to improve to 9-1 on the season.
No. 23 Cameron Norrie was next on the board for the Frogs after dropping a set for the first time this season. The junior responded by dominating the final two sets, 6-1, 6-1, to improve to 8-0 on the season and defeat his eighth ranked opponent. Just moments later, fellow junior and No. 93 Guillermo Nuñez finished off No. 92 Michael Genender in a tiebreaker in the second set to even out the match at 3-3. Serving for the match, senior and No. 110 Jerry Lopez clinched the comeback as he took down No. 89 Jack Barber, 7-5, 6-4.
Quotes from the Match
Head Coach David Roditi
"Wow! What a comeback! As a coach, I couldn't be more proud. There was only one way we were able to win that match and we all knew it and our top four guys came through. (Cameron) Norrie coming back and (Alex) Rybakov winning that first set breaker was a big momentum swing for us and I felt our energy surge after that. Now we have a day of rest to get healthy and continue our California road trip at a tough UCSB team on Monday. We will enjoy this win and get ready tomorrow. I felt the alumni support and our Frog fans here made a big difference, especially at (Jerry) Lopez's court."
Match Results
TCU vs Stanford
Mar 11, 2017 at Palo Alto, Calif.
(Taube Family Tennis Stadium)
#31 TCU 4, #41 Stanford 3
Singles competition
1. #23 Cameron Norrie (TCU) def. #13 Tom Fawcett (STAN) 3-6, 6-1, 6-1
2. #84 Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. Sameer Kumar (STAN) 7-6 (7-5), 6-0
3. #93 Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) def. #92 Michael Genender (STAN) 6-1, 7-6 (7-5)
4. #110 Jerry Lopez (TCU) def. #89 Jack Barber (STAN) 7-5, 6-4
5. David Wilczynski (STAN) def. Reese Stalder (TCU) 6-1, 6-1
6. Brandon Sutter (STAN) def. Gianni Mancini (TCU) 6-2, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Jerry Lopez/Cameron Norrie (TCU) def. Tom Fawcett/Yale Goldberg (STAN) 7-5
2. Sameer Kumar/Michael Genender (STAN) def. #27 Alex Rybakov/Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) 7-6 (7-3)
3. David Wilczynski/Brandon Sutter (STAN) def. Gianni Mancini/Reese Stalder (TCU) 6-1
Match Notes:
TCU 7-4; National ranking #31
Stanford 7-4; National ranking #41
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (5,6,2,1,3,4)
Up Next
TCU will continue its spring break road trip in California by heading to Santa Barbara to face UCSB for a showdown on March 13 at 3:30 p.m., CT, and will then wrap-up the trip at Pepperdine on March 16 at 7 p.m., CT.
Players Mentioned
