Sept. 27, 2014
PHILADELPHIA - The Penn State men's tennis team completed the second day at the Penn Invite and the first day of the Pre-Qualifying Draw at the ITA All-American Championships. The championships are being hosted by the University of Tulsa. At the Penn Invite, the Nittany Lions defeated Princeton in a hidden-dual format.
At the ITA All-American Championships, sophomore Alex Fennell (Bala Cynwyd, Pa.) and senior Tomas Hanzlik (Prague, Czech Republic) both received first round byes in the Pre-Qualifying Draw. Fennell and Hanzlik were seeded 11th and 9th, respectively, in the bracket.
In the Pre-Qualifying Draw first round, junior Matt Barry (Lido Beach, N.Y.) took on Utah's Matt Cowley. In the first set, Barry won 6-3. Cowley responded with a 6-4 win in the second set. In a tight deciding set, Cowley came out on top, 7-5.
In second round action, Fennell faced Notre Dame's Kenny Sabacinski. In the opening set, Fennell claimed a tough set, 7-5. Sabacinski came back with a 6-4 win in the second set. In the final set, Fennell won 6-4 to advance to Sunday's third round.
Playing for the first time in 11 months, Hanzlik competed against Wichita State's Miroslav Herzan. The senior won the first set, 6-4. A hard-fought second set went to Herzan, 7-6(8). In another close set, Herzan came out on top, 6-4, in the third frame.
"The big difference we noticed right away here was the temperature difference," said Head Coach Jeff Zinn. "We had some very tough matches to start off the tournament. Every player here is good or they would not be here."
"We actually had match points in both of our matches that we lost. Matt had two match points and Tomas had one match point. That is pretty unusual and all I have to say is I'm glad that happened in the fall and not the spring. I was happy for Alex that he pulled out his match in three sets against a very good opponent."
At the Penn Invite, the Nittany Lions took on Princeton in a semifinal match. The teams again played a hidden dual format, with the top two doubles matches and each singles match accounting for a point. With the match tied at 4-4, the teams played a super tiebreaker doubles match, with the Nittany Lions winning. Princeton finished last year ranked 61st in the ITA Poll. Penn State advances to Sunday's final against Penn.
Christian Lutschaunig (Richboro, Pa.) and Michael Reilly (Raleigh, N.C.) combined at the top doubles spot against the Tigers' Luke Gamble and Ben Tso. However, the Princeton duo won the match, 6-3.
At the second doubles spot, Aws Laaribi (Rye, N.Y.) and Roman Trkulja (Toronto, Canada) paired up against Princeton's Ben Quazzo and Diego Vives. The Nittany Lion duo won their match, 6-3, to give Penn State a team point.
Sophomores Marc Collado Castells (Barcelona, Spain) and Nika Dolidze (Tbilisi, Georgia) competed at the third doubles position against Mohamed El Tonbari and Florin Radu. Though it did not count for a team point, Collado Castells and Dolidze came out on top with a 6-1 victory.
Dolidze also took on Princeton's Gamble at the top singles spot. However, Dolidze dropped a 6-0, 7-5 decision. Collado Castells competed at No. 2 singles against Dan Richardson, but fell 6-3, 6-3.
Trkulja, a junior, faced the Tigers' Vives at the third singles spot. The Toronto native won the first set, 6-3. Trkulja was leading 3-1 in the second set when Vives retired from the match due to injury.
In the match at No. 4 singles, Laaribi, a sophomore, earned a 6-4, 7-5 straight set win against El Tonbari. The senior, Reilly, added his own straight set win at No. 5, defeating Radu, 7-5, 6-3.
Lutschaunig took on the Tigers' Tso at the sixth singles spot. Tso claimed the first set, 6-3, but the sophomore bounced back with his own 6-3 win in the second set. In the deciding set, Tso won 6-2.
With the team score tied at 4-4, Laaribi and Trkulja played a super tiebreaker set against Gamble and Tso. The Penn State duo earned a 10-6 win to clinch the match point for the Nittany Lions.
"I knew we were in for a tight match against Princeton," said Assistant Coach Paul Tobin. "Coach Keckley did a great job getting Princeton to the semis and beat Minnesota to get here. Our doubles play was strong at No. 2 and No. 3. Christian and Mike had some momentum, but just never were able to take control. Great job by Aws, Roman and Mike closing out singles wins. Very exciting super tiebreaker, Aws and Roman played great doubles to get an early lead and take control. Looking forward to playing Penn tomorrow in the finals."
Please check back to GoPSUSports.com throughout the weekend for more coverage of the Penn State men's tennis team. Updates are also available on our Facebook, Penn State Men's Tennis, and Twitter, @pennstateMTEN, pages.
ITA All-American Championships
Pre-Qualifying Draw:
1st Round) Matt Cowley(Utah) def. Matt Barry(PSU), 3-6, 6-4, 7-5.
2nd Round) Alex Fennell(PSU) def. Kenny Sabacinski(ND), 7-5, 4-6, 6-4.
Miroslav Herzan(Wich) def. Tomas Hanzlik(PSU), 4-6, 7-6(8), 6-4.
Penn Invite
Penn State 5, Princeton 4
Doubles:
1. Gamble/Tso(Princeton) def. Lutschaunig/Reilly(PSU), 6-3.
2. Laaribi/Trkulja(PSU) def. Quazzo/Vives(Princeton), 6-3.
3. Collado Castells/Dolidze(PSU) def. El Tonbari/Radu(Princeton), 6-1.*
4. Laaribi/Trkulja(PSU) def. Gamble/Tso(Princeton), 10-6.**
* Did not count in team score
** Tiebreaker to decide match point.
Singles:
1. Luke Gamble(Princeton) def. Nika Dolidze(PSU), 6-0, 7-5.
2. Dan Richardson(Princeton) def. Marc Collado Castells(PSU), 6-3, 6-3.
3. Roman Trkulja(PSU) def. Diego Vives(Princeton), 6-3, 3-1, retire.
4. Aws Laaribi(PSU) def. Mohamed El Tonbari(Princeton), 6-4, 7-5.
5. Michael Reilly(PSU) def. Florin Radu(Princeton), 7-5, 6-3.
6. Ben Tso(Princeton) def. Christian Lutschaunig(PSU), 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.