Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
Memphis
Cowboy Tennis Takes Down No. 61 Memphis
March 13, 2015 | Cowboy Tennis
STILLWATER - The No. 32 Oklahoma State men's tennis team defeated No. 61 Memphis, 4-2, in front of a raucous crowd at the Greenwood Tennis Center on Friday.
"It was a good team win," coach Jay Udwadia said. "It definitely got close there. We had a slow start in singles, but I give credit to Memphis for playing well during that period. To come back and play well in front of a big home crowd was fun. We're looking to carry that momentum into Sunday and looking forward to a tough match against Pepperdine."
The Cowboys (11-3; 0-0 Big 12) powered through the doubles portion of competition, winning on courts one and two, respectively. At the No. 1-spot, All-Americans Jakob Sude and Arjun Kadhe put down the 55th-ranked Glennon/Lemke duo with ease, 6-2. With the competition on courts two and three heating up as both sides exchanged games, Lucas Gerch and Nicolai Ferrigno, fresh off a Pacific Coast Men's Doubles Championship title, pulled ahead on court two to win their bout, 6-3.
Memphis responded in singles, tying the team score, 1-1, with a win on court three as Ryan Peniston defeated No. 122 Arjun Kadhe, 6-1, 6-1.
The Cowboys regained the lead with a straight-set win on court four. Freshman Tristan Meraut put up a strong showing over Memphis' Patrick Mayer, 6-3, 6-3. Meraut was up 5-2 in the second set, but lost match point; however, he went on to shut out Mayer in the following game to win the set, 6-3.
Lucas Gerch put on a show, upsetting No. 54 Andrew Watson in two sets. Gerch won the first in a seven-point tiebreaker, 7-6(2). He sealed the win on court two with a dominating 6-1 victory in the second set. The sophomore improved to 10-1 on the season.
The Tigers earned their second and final point on court one as No. 102 Jakob Sude fell to 56th-ranked Connor Glennon in two tough sets, 6-4, 7-6(6).
Clinching the match for the Pokes was freshman Jurence Mendoza, who fought off Patrick Maji on court six. Mendoza took the first set in a tiebreaker, 7-6(4). In the second, he gained a 4-1 lead before Manji came back to bring the set to 4-4. In the final game of the set, the Cowboy held off three game points to win it, 6-4.
Play on court five was unfinished. The match proved to be one to watch as Nicolai Ferrigno fell in the opening set, 6-3, but battled back in the second, winning, 7-6(3) to force the match to a third.
OSU will wrap up the weekend on Sunday, playing No. 49 Pepperdine at 11:45 a.m. at the Greenwood Tennis Center.
No. 32 Oklahoma State 4, No. 61 Memphis 2
March 13, 2015 :: Greenwood Tennis Center :: Attendance: 218
Doubles | Order of finish: 1, 2
1. #16 Sude/Kadhe (OKST) def. #55 Glennon/Lemke (MEMPHIS) 6-2
2. Gerch/Ferrigno (OKST) def. Watson/Asser (MEMPHIS) 6-3
3. Mendoza/Meraut (OKST) vs. Mayer/Manji (MEMPHIS) 5-4 unf.
Singles | Order of finish: 3, 4, 2, 1, 6*
1. #56 Connor Glennon (MEMPHIS) def. #102 Jakob Sude (OKST) 6-4, 7-6(6)
2. Lucas Gerch (OKST) def. #54 Andrew Watson (MEMPHIS) 7-6(2), 6-1
3. Ryan Peniston (MEMPHIS) def. #122 Arjun Kadhe (OKST) 6-1, 6-1
4. Tristan Meraut (OKST) def. Patrick Mayer (MEMPHIS) 6-3, 6-3
5. Nicolai Ferrigno (OKST) vs. Kai Lemke (MEMPHIS) 3-6, 7-6(3), 0-2, unf
6. Jurence Mendoza (OKST) def. Shakeel Manji (MEMPHIS) 7-6(4), 6-4
