Feb. 28, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Tied 6-6 in his third set tiebreaker, junior Matt Barry (Lido Beach, N.Y.) battled to win 8-6 and give the Nittany Lions the spark they needed to complete their comeback. The No. 39 Penn State men's tennis team earned a 4-3 win against No. 23 Princeton on Saturday at the Indoor Tennis Center. Sophomore Aws Laaribi (Rye, N.Y.) clinched the win with his victory at No. 5, senior Tomas Hanzlik (Prague, Czech Republic) also helped the rally with a win at No. 6. The Nittany Lions are now 5-7 this spring, while Princeton dropped to 9-3.
With the win, Penn State, led by Head Coach Jeff Zinn and Assistant Coach Paul Tobin, now has three victories this season against Top 25 teams. They also defeated No. 19 Kentucky and No. 20 South Florida. Three Top 25 wins is the most in a single season in program history.
"We didn't start off very well, I think it was a combination of being tired from yesterday and how well Princeton is coached," said Zinn. "They played us perfectly, played all of our weaknesses. We got down and we needed Matt Barry to spark us. We needed Leo to come out strong, I moved Leo down today to get him some confidence. He came out strong and won in straight sets, that really helped us. Matt Barry fighting through to pull out that match was huge, that shows the heart of a warrior. He's done that so many times for us. Then Tomas on the last court and Aws really focused to close out that last set."
Junior Leonard Stakhovsky (Kiev, Ukraine), ranked 121st in the ITA Poll, matched up against Thomas Colautti. Stakhovsky jumped out to an 3-0 lead in the first set, on his way to a 6-3 set win. The junior kept his momentum going in the second set, again winning 6-3. He is now 3-7 this spring.
At the third singles spot, Barry matched up against Joshua Yablon. In the opening set, Barry rallied from down 5-3 to force a tiebreaker. In a tight tiebreaker, Yablon won 9-7. Barry responded by winning the next set, 6-4, to set up the thrilling third set. Barry led 5-3 in the final set, but Yablon won the next three points to take a 6-5 lead. Barry forced another tiebreaker. The junior took a 4-2 lead in the tiebreaker, but Yablon came back to tie it at 6-6. Barry took the next two points to win the set and tie the overall match score at 3-3. Barry is now 7-3 this spring and has 11 wins overall.
Laaribi competed against Princeton's Kial Kaiser at the No. 5 singles position. The sophomore took the opening set, 6-3, but Kaiser won the second set, 6-4. Laaribi broke Kaiser for the first point of the third set, giving him momentum to close out the set, 6-2, and clinch the win for the Nittany Lions. Laaribi improved to 4-3 in dual matches.
Senior Tomas Hanzlik (Prague, Czech Republic) took on Dan Richardson at the sixth position. Up 3-2 in the first set, Hanzlik won the last three games to take the frame. The senior carried his momentum to the next set, dominating a 6-0 set win. Hanzlik is now 3-4 this spring.
Sophomore Alex Fennell (Bala Cynwyd, Pa.) got his third start of the year at No. 1, matching up against Princeton's Zack McCourt, ranked 124th in the ITA Poll. The players traded the first seven points, but McCourt got a break at 4-3 on his way to a 6-3 set win. In a back-and-forth second set, McCourt forced a tiebreaker at 6-6. McCourt came out on top, 7-3, in the tiebreaker. Fennell dropped to 5-7 this spring.
Junior Roman Trkulja (Toronto, Canada) met Alexander Day at the fourth singles spot. The two traded points in the first set, until Day broke at 4-4. Day won the set, 6-4. In the second set, Trkulja led 2-1, but dropped the set, 6-4. Trkulja is now 3-6 this spring.
The Tigers won the doubles point, picking up victories at the top two spots.
Barry and sophomore Christian Lutschaunig (Richboro, Pa.) combined at No. 3 against Princeton's Alexander Day and Joshua Yablon. The Nittany Lion duo fought back from a 3-2 deficit to take a 7-4 advantage. The duo won 8-5 in the first time they have played together this spring.
Laaribi and Stakhovsky paired up at the top doubles spot against Princeton's Thomas Colautti and Zack McCourt. With the score tied 2-2, the Tigers took the next three points. The Nittany Lions got the score back within 7-6, but Princeton won the next game to take the set, 8-6, and clinch the doubles point. The pair is now 4-3 this spring.
Senior Michael Reilly (Raleigh, N.C.) and Trkulja competed at No. 2 against Luke Gamble and Diego Vives. Princeton jumped out to a 6-3 lead on their way to an 8-4 set win. Reilly and Trkulja dropped to 3-3 this spring.
"Wow! These are the kinds of matches that elevate a coach's blood pressure," said Tobin. "Although I dislike such nail-biter matches, it's great tennis and you can get a true sense of the kind of heart these players have. Hopefully, this is a turning point in our program and the players recognize how talented they are. Great job by Aws, who clinched the win!"
The Nittany Lions travel next weekend to Richmond, Va. to face No. 69 VCU in an 11 a.m. match. The Rams are 10-3 this spring.
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Doubles:
1. Colautti/McCourt(Prin) def. Laaribi/Stakhovsky(PSU), 8-6.
2. Gamble/Vives(Prin) def. Reilly/Trkulja(PSU), 8-4.
3. Barry/Lutschaunig(PSU) vs. Day/Yablon(Prin), 8-5.
Order of Finish: 3,2,1
Singles:
1. #124 Zack McCourt(Prin) def. Alex Fennell(PSU), 6-3, 7-6(3).
2. #121 Leo Stakhovsky(PSU) def. Thomas Colautti(Prin), 6-3, 6-3.
3. Matt Barry(PSU) def. Joshua Yablon(Prin), 6-7(7), 6-4, 7-6(6).
4. Alexander Day(Prin) def. Roman Trkulja(PSU), 6-4, 6-4.
5. Aws Laaribi(PSU) def. Kial Kaiser(Prin), 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.
6. Tomas Hanzlik(PSU) def. Dan Richardson(Prin), 6-2, 6-0.
Order of Finish: 2,4,1,6,3,5,6