TUCSON, Ariz.--- Arizona split with a pair of ranked teams on the final day of the ITA Pre Kick-Off event on Monday, as the Cats took down No. 61 New Mexico 4-1 and dropped a 4-3 heartbreaker to No. 41 Texas Tech at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center.
Monday, Jan. 19, 2015
10:00 am MST
Arizona 4 (1-4), No. 61 New Mexico 1 (3-2)
SINGLES
1. Sumeet Shinde (UA) def. Mitcheil McDaniels (UNM) 6-3, 6-1
2. Naoki Takeda (UA) vs. Hayden Sabatka (UNM) 4-6, 6-1, 0-0 unfinished
3. Jason Jaruvang (UA) def. Bart Van Leijsen (UNM) 6-2, 6-3
4. David Mushayev (UA) def. Rodolfo Jauregui (UNM) 7-6, 3-6, 6-2
5. Shoki Kasahara (UA) def. James Hignett (UNM) 6-0, 6-7, 7-6
6. Augustus Ge (UNM) def. Trevor James (UA) 6-1, 7-5
Order of Finish: 3,6,1,5,4*
*Clinching point
DOUBLES
None Played
Recap: Arizona (1-4) posted its best performance on the early season, as it cruised to an impressive 4-1 victory over No. 61 New Mexico (3-2) Monday morning out at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center, in its first match of the third and final day of ITA Pre Kick-Off play.
The win marked Arizona's first win of the season, while it improved to 1-2 against ranked opponents this season.
Jason Jaruvang set the tone early for Arizona from the No. 3 spot, as he easily took down Bart Van Leijsen, 6-2, 6-3 to put the Cats on top 1-0.
However Arizona's lead wouldn't last long, as New Mexico quickly knotted things back up at 1-1, as Augustus Ge took down Trevor James, 6-1, 7-5 on court six.
But the Wildcats refused to give in, as they responded with three straight victories to clinch the match.
Sumeet Shinde showed why he's one of the senior leaders on this year's squad, as he stepped up and earned a convincing 6-3, 6-1 victory over Mitcheil McDaniels from the No. 1 position to sport the Cats a 2-1 lead.
Arizona continued to pour it on, as Shoki Kasahara grinded out a gutsy 6-0, 6-7, 7-6 win from the No. 5 position to push the Wildcats to the brink of victory, as they held a 3-1 advantage.
Then it was David Mushayev who came through with the all-important fourth and match-clinching point for the Cats, as he held on for a dramatic 7-6, 3-6, 6-2 win over Rodolfo Jauregui to bring the final score to 4-1.
ARIZONA POSTMATCH QUOTES
Head Coach Tad Berkowitz
“It's a well-deserved win for our guys. They just kept at it and played with a ton of toughness. For Shoki to beat their senior captain in January is huge. I give him and our freshmen a lot of credit today. They had to step up for us and they did."
Freshman David Mushayev
"I am really excited for our first team win. Shoki had a great match too. Everyone was fighting and giving it their all on the courts this morning. That is what it is going to take for us to win.”
Monday, Jan. 19, 2015
10:00 am MST
No. 41 Texas Tech (4-1) 4, UC Irvine (2-3) 0
SINGLES
1. No. 28 Felipe Soares (TTU) def. Nico Mertens (UCI) 6-2, 7-5
2. Sebastian Heim (UCI) vs. Hugo Dojas (TTU) 2-0, unfinished
3. Victor Cornea (TTU) def. Tyler Pham (UCI) 6-2, 6-0
4. Alex Sendegeya (TTU) def. Shuhei Shibahara (UCI) 7-5, 6-1
5. Johnathan Hammel (UCI) vs. Jolan Caileau (TTU) 3-6, 6-4, 2-3, unfinished
6. Francisco Zambron (TTU) def. Justin Agbayani (UCI) 6-0, 6-1
Order of Finish: 3,6,1,4*
*Clinching point
DOUBLES
None Played
Recap: Texas Tech (4-1) cruised to a 4-0 victory over UC Irvine (2-3) Monday morning out at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center, in the morning session on the final day of ITA Pre Kick-Off play.
Victor Cornea got things started for the Red Raiders, earning convincing 6-2, 6-0 straight-set victory over Tyler Pham on court three to sport Texas Tech a 1-0 advantage.
Francisco Zambron then followed suit, defeating Justin Agbayani 6-0, 6-1 from the No. 6 spot to extend Texas Tech's lead to 2-0.
Then it was Felipe Soares showing why he's considered one of the top players in the country, as he took down Nico Mertens, 6-2, 7-5 to put the Red Raiders up 3-0 and on the brink of victory.
Alex Sendegeya then finished the deal for Texas Tech, as he cruised to a 7-5, 6-1 win over Shuhei Shibahaha to bring the final to 4-0.
TEXAS TECH POSTMATCH QUOTES
Head Coach Tim Siegel
“It was definitely a better match today than a couple of days prior. UC Irvine is a scrappy, competitive team. We have been getting better and better though. We improved tremendously as a team with our energy, emotions and enthusiasm. We had a bit of an added spark today."
Monday, Jan. 19, 2015
2:00 pm MST
No. 61 New Mexico (4-2) 4, UC Irvine (2-4) 1
SINGLES
1. Nico Mertens (UCI) vs. Mitchell McDaniels (UNM) 5-7, 4-0, unfinished
2. Hayden Sabatka (UNM) def. Sebastian Heim (UCI) 7-5, 5-7, 7-6
3. Bart Van Leijsen (UNM) def. Tyler Pham (UCI) 7-5, 5-7, 7-6
4. Shuhei Shibahara (UCI) def. James Hignett (UNM) 2-6, 6-3, 6-2
5. Augustus Ge (UNM) def. Johnathan Hammel (UCI) 6-3, 6-2
6. Jorge Escutia (UNM) def. Jonathan Poon (UCI) 6-1, 6-4
Order of Finish: 6,5,2,4,3*
*Clinching point
DOUBLES
None Played
Recap: New Mexico (4-2) clinched its fourth win of the weekend, as it managed to get by UC Irvine (2-4), 4-1, Monday afternoon at the LaNelle Robson Tennis Center, in its final match of the ITA Pre Kick-Off.
Jorge Escutia set the tone early for the Lobos, as he earned a 6-1, 6-4 victory at the No. 6 position to put New Mexico in front 1-0.
Augustus Ge then followed suit from the No. 5 spot, claiming a convincing 6-3, 6-2 victory over Johnathan Hammel to extend New Mexico's lead to 2-0.
Hayden Sabatka then put the Lobos on the brink of victory, as he notched a hard-fought 7-5, 5-7, 7-6 win over Sebastian Heim on court two.
But the Anteaters refused to give in, as Shuhei Shibahara grinded out a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 come-from-behind win over James Hignett from the No. 4 spot to put UC Irvine on the board.
It was far from easy, but Bart Van Leijsen was able to close the door on UC Irvine's comeback attempt, as he took down Tyler Pham in dramatic fashion, 7-5, 5-7, 7-6, to finish off the 4-1 win.
The Anteaters finished the weekend with a 2-4 record.
Monday, Jan. 19, 2015
2:00 pm MST
No. 41 Texas Tech (5-1) 4, Arizona (1-5) 3
SINGLES
1. Naoki Takeda (UA def. No. 28 Felipe Soares (TTU) 6-2, 5-7, 7-6
2. Sumeet Shinde (UA) def. Hugo Dojas (TTU) 6-2, 7-6
3. Victor Cornea (TTU) def. Jason Jaruvang (UA) 6-4, 6-2
4. Alex Sendegeya (TTU) def. David Mushayev (UA) 6-4, 7-5
5. Shoki Kasahara (UA) def. Jolan Caileau (TTU) 6-4, 5-7, 6-3
6. Francisco Zambron (TTU) def. Trevor James (UA) 0-6, 6-3, 6-4
Order of Finish: 3,4,2,6,5,1
DOUBLES
1. Shinde/ Mushayev (UA) vs. Dojas/Soares (TTU) 1-5, unfinished
2. Sendegeya/ Cornea (TTU) def. Kasahara/ Takeda 10-7
3. Curry/ Zambron (TTU def. Jaruvang/ Dunn (UA) 10-8
Order of Finish: 3, 2*
*Clinching point
Recap: The best was certainty saved for last in this tournament, as Arizona and No. 41 Texas Tech battled for over four hours and 20 minutes in Monday's ITA Pre Kick-Off finale, but the Wildcats couldn't quite complete what would have been a comeback for the ages, as UA fell 4-3 to Texas Tech at the Robson Tennis Center.
The Cats at one point trailed 3-1 in the match, but rallied to win two straight contests, including the singles match of the year thus far for UA on court one, which saw Naoki Takeda take down No. 28 Felipe Soares 6-2, 5-7, 7-6 to force a winner-take-all doubles round. The junior trailed the 28th ranked player in the country 6-5 in the third and deciding set before squeaking out the victory.
Texas Tech (5-1) jumped on Arizona (1-5) early, claiming victories on courts three and four to take a commanding 2-0 lead.
However, senior Sumeet Shinde responded with his second victory of the day, earning a 6-2, 7-6 straight-set win over Hugo Dojas on court two to get the Cats on the board.
Texas Tech managed to distance themselves once again, as it notched a victory on court six, but Shoki Kasahara came through with his second victory of the afternoon to keep Arizona alive, as he grinded out a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 victory over Jolan Caileau.
Then it was Takeda who completed the dramatic rally to force the doubles point, but Arizona fell just short in the end, as Kasahara and Takeda lost a 10-7 affair on court two, while Jason Jaruvang and Matt Dunn dropped a 10-8 heartbreaker on court three.
The Cats will get back after it, as they host UC Riverside next Saturday at noon MST.
ARIZONA POSTMATCH QUOTES
Senior Sumeet Shinde
"I felt like I was hitting well. Mentally I was exhausted at the end. I stayed solid thoughout and hung in the match. I think I am a much more mature player this season than I have been in the past."
Head Coach Tad Berkowitz
"In the beginning of the tournament, admittedly Texas Tech got us pretty good. Today we were toe-to-toe with them. We improved every day and the guys have even come closer together as a unit. We were shorthanded a little bit the first couple days, but today we had a full deck and it really showed what we can do together as a team."
TEXAS TECH POSTMATCH QUOTES
Head Coach Tim Siegel
"Wow what an amazing last match against Arizona. Arizona has a tremendous team. They are definitely going to go far this year. It was a great college match and I have a ton of respect for Arizona and coach Tad Berkowitz with what they are doing here."
