| Junior Michael James was a straight-set winner over No. 16 Andre Begemann of Pepperdine in the Nittany Lions' 4-1 loss to the Waves in the first round of the NCAA Championships. |
LOS ANGELES, Calif.; May 11, 2007 - The 42nd-ranked Penn State men's tennis battled 20th-ranked and defending national champion Pepperdine, but fell short, 4-1, in the first round of the NCAA Tennis Championships on Friday at Marks Stadium on the campus of USC in Los Angeles.
Penn State (16-7, 6-4 Big Ten) fell behind 1-0 after Pepperdine picked up wins in the first two doubles matches. Despite the early deficit, the Nittany Lions battled the Waves in singles action. Penn State fell behind 3-0, just before junior Michael James (Clifton, Va.) picked up a big win at the No. 1 spot over Pepperdine's Andre Begemann, who is ranked 16th in the nation. Nonetheless, the Waves withstood the Nittany Lion charge, and ultimately clinched the match.
"I was really proud of how hard the guys fought today," said head coach Todd Doebler. "We lost to a very good Pepperdine team, but I think an experience like this will help our guys in the future. Michael, once again, came through with a great singles win. All in all, it is hard to lose, but I think our guys have really learned a lot and will be excited for the future."
At No. 1 doubles, James and senior Ryan Berger (Grand Rapids, Mich.) were pitted against Omar Altmann and Richard Johnson. The Pepperdine team jumped out to a 4-0 lead before James and Berger got on the board. Despite cutting the margin to 4-1, Altmann and Johnson cruised to an 8-1 victory to get the Waves on the board first in doubles. Berger and James fall to 7-6 on the year.
The Nittany Lion duo of sophomore Adam Slagter (Austin, Texas) and junior James Dwyer (Peachtree City, Ga.) trailed 7-3 in the No. 2 bout before rallying to shave Andre Begemann and Mahmoud Kamel's lead to 7-6. With the scoreboard reading 7-4 in favor of Pepperdine, Slagter and Dwyer converted on a big break point to claw back to within a break. Despite the comeback, Begemann served out the match to hand the Waves a 1-0 lead. Dwyer and Slagter fall to 2-2 on the year.
Senior Bradley Hunter (Atlanta, Ga.) and sophomore Brendan Lynch (North Potomac, Md.) battled back from a 3-1 deficit to square the No. 3 match against Bassam Beidas and James Lemke at five all. The match was halted with the score reading 6-5 in favor of Penn State.
With Pepperdine up 1-0, the match turned to singles play. Pepperdine took a 2-0 lead with a straight-set decision at No. 6. Kamel handed Hunter a 6-1, 6-1 defeat in what was Hunter's final match as a Nittany Lion. Hunter fell behind by a 4-1 margin in the first, and ultimately could not recover. He finishes his senior season with a 14-6 overall record.
The Waves snagged a commanding 3-0 lead after a second straight-set decision. This victory came at the No. 5 spot. Altmann knocked off freshman Ryan Gormley (Las Vegas, Nev.) by a score of 6-4, 6-2. Altmann grabbed a key break in the sixth game of the first set to take a 4-2 lead. He then served out the set, 6-4. In the second, the Nittany Lion freshman battled Altmann, but the dropped the set by a score of 6-2. Gormley concludes his freshman season with a record of 19-8, including a 15-6 mark in duals.
James, who is ranked 90th in the latest ITA National Singles Poll, took on Begemann in the No. 1 bout. The two standouts were on serve with the score reading 5-4 in favor of Begemann. With James at the service line, Begemann had one set point, but James came up with a pair of strong first serves to hold. From there, James grabbed a break in the next game to take a 6-5 lead. He served out the first, 7-5. In the second, the Nittany Lion junior grabbed a pivotal break in the first game of the set. He used the momentum to take a 5-1 lead. Despite the commanding edge, Begemann rallied back to set the score at 5-3. Nonetheless, James served out the match for his fourth win against a ranked opponent this season. He improves to 27-8 overall and 16-6 in duals. James' win cut the Pepperdine lead to 3-1.
With three tight matches on the court, the No. 3 bout proved to be the match-clinching decision. Slagter dropped the first set to the Waves' Lemke, 6-2. However, Slagter battled back in the second despite Lemke dominating the first. Slagter trailed 4-2 in the second when he rallied. The sophomore southpaw knotted the score at five with a break of his own. Despite saving three match points, Slagter suffered a 7-5 setback, which sealed the match for the defending national champions. Slagter falls 19-11 overall in his last match as a sophomore.
In the remaining singles matches, Berger trailed Beidas 6-4, 4-5 in his final match as a Nittany Lion. Berger concludes his senior season with a 20-12 overall record. At No. 4, Lynch trailed Johnson 7-5, 5-2. Lynch and Johnson fought 5-5 tie, with Johnson prevailing with a late break.
Defending national champion Pepperdine improves to 23-7 overall. The Waves will face the winner of the UC Santa Barbara vs. No. 12 USC match on Saturday at 3 p.m. (PT) at USC's Marks Stadium.
The loss concludes the 2007 season for Penn State. The Nittany Lions will be back in action during the fall with the Penn State Fall Classic.
Final Score: #20 Pepperdine 4, #42 Penn State 1
Doubles
1. Omar Altmann/Richard Johnson (PEP) def. Ryan Berger/Michael James (PSU), 8-1
2. Andre Begemann/Mahmoud Kamel (PEP) def. James Dwyer/Adam Slagter (PSU), 8-6
3. Brendan Lynch/Bradley Hunter (PSU) led Bassam Beidas/James Lemke (PEP), 6-5, unfinished
Order of finish: 1, 2
Singles
1. #90 Michael James (PSU) def. #16 Andre Begemann (PEP), 7-5, 6-3
2. #54 Bassam Beidas (PEP) led Ryan Berger (PSU), 4-6, 5-4, unfinished
3. James Lemke (PEP) def. Adam Slagter (PSU), 6-2, 7-5
4. Richard Johnson (PEP) led Brendan Lynch (PSU), 7-5, 5-2, unfinished
5. Omar Altmann (PEP) def. Ryan Gormley (PSU), 6-4, 6-2
6. Mahmoud Kamel (PEP) def. Bradley Hunter (PSU), 6-1, 6-1
Order of Finish: 6, 5, 1, 3