Oklahoma State University Athletics
Friday, February 17
Charlottesville, Va.
9:00 a.m.
Oklahoma State University
4
vs
2
Northwestern
Cowboys Drop Sixth-Seeded Northwestern to Advance at ITA Indoors
February 17, 2017 | Cowboy Tennis
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The 11th-seeded Oklahoma State men's tennis team defeated sixth-seeded Northwestern, 4-2, to improve to 8-1 on the year and advance to the quarterfinals of the ITA National Team Indoor Championship.
The win over the Wildcats (10-1, 0-0 Big Ten) marks the Cowboys' highest-ranked victory since defeating No. 6 Tennessee, 4-2, at the Greenwood Tennis Center in 2014. Friday's victory also means the Cowboys will make their second straight appearance in the tournament's quarterfinals, having previously advanced after a victory over fourth-ranked Baylor in 2008.
"We knew going into today that it was going to be a tough matchup," head coach Jay Udwadia said. "It was really an amazing match that went down to the wire and we were fortunate to be able to come out on top. I think that our guys showed a lot of resiliency and composure, especially being down a break in those final two matches. Those guys showed a lot of grit and were able to beat a team that hadn't lost all season."
The Cowboys, much like they have throughout Udwadia's tenure, used the doubles point to quickly jump in front of the Wildcats on Friday.
Artur Dubinski and Lukas Finzelberg were the first to claim victory for the Pokes, as the pair of right-handers rolled past Northwestern's Chris Ephron and Michael Lorenzini, 6-1, on court three.
Their win was followed up by Julian Cash and Arjun Kadhe, ranked No. 5 in the nation, on court one, who have secured the doubles point for OSU for the fourth time this season.
The All-American tandem was able to take control of the match early on, going up 3-1 over the Wildcat duo thanks to a key break point. The two duos then exchanged serve before Cash spiked a return at the net to lock up the 6-4 win and the doubles point for the Cowboys. Cash and Kadhe's victory marks their 50th win as a tandem and is the 16th time that they have claimed victory this season.
"Doubles is always fast-paced," Udwadia said. "With no-ad scoring you have to start quickly and I thought we were able to do that today. We've had good energy in doubles all season long and I think that we continued to do well in that aspect. It was a very clean doubles point for us."
Oklahoma State is unbeaten this season when it wins the doubles point, posting an 8-0 record in such matches. The Cowboys' triumph in doubles on Friday also marked the first time that Northwestern had been defeated in doubles this season.
As play moved into singles action, Northwestern was able to pick up a win on court six to tie up the match, but Lucas Gerch quickly put the Cowboys back in front with a win on five.
After dropping the first set in his matchup with Ben Vandixhorn, 6-3, Gerch rallied and blazed through the final two sets, 6-0, 6-1, to put OSU back on top, 2-1. The senior has won 11 singles contests this season and holds an impressive 8-1 mark in dual matches this spring.
Artur Dubinski was the next to complete his match, as he pushed the Cowboys' lead to 3-1 with his win on court four. The sophomore won a tiebreak to claim the first set and then pulled away from Dominik Stary in the second set to, 7-6 (1), 6-1. The win marks Dubinski's second collegiate dual-match victory since joining the Cowboys earlier this month.
The Wildcats picked up another win on court two to close the gap to 3-2, but Julian Cash's win on court one proved to be the clincher for Oklahoma State.
Cash stormed through the first set of his matchup with No. 25 Strong Kirchheimer, 6-1, but dropped the second in a tight tiebreak. The Brighton, England native then found himself down a break in the third set, 4-2. With his back against the wall, Cash came alive, winning the final four games, including his first two break points since the first set, to seal the Cowboys' win.
"I thought that Cash showed a lot of grit today," Udwadia said. "Northwestern has three seniors playing one, two and three in their lineup so they're very polished at those positions. You have to work really hard to be able to win those matches and Cash was in battle-mode today."
Cash's win was his ninth of the season and the fifth time that he has defeated a ranked opponent this year.
He and the Cowboys now move on to tomorrow's quarterfinals, where they will face off with the No. 3-seeded Ohio State. Saturday's showdown will mark the second-ever meeting between the two schools.
Tomorrow's quarterfinal matchup is set to begin at 8 a.m. CT at the Boar's Head Sports Club.
(11) Oklahoma State 4, (6) Northwestern 2
Feb. 17, 2017 | Boar's Head Sports Club | Charlottesville, Va.
Doubles (Order of finish: 3, 2, 1)
C1: No. 5 Cash/Kadhe (OSU) def. No. 53 Shropshire/Zieba (NW), 6-4
C2: Kirchheimer/Stary (NW) def. No. 50 Gerch/Mendoza, 6-3
C3: Finzelberg/Dubinski (OSU) def. Ephron/Lorenzini (NW), 6-1
Singles (Order of finish: 6, 5, 4, 2, 1)
C1: No. 32 Julian Cash (OSU) def. No. 25 Strong Kirchheimer (NW), 6-1, 6-7, 6-1
C2: Konrad Zieba (NW) def. No. 48 Lukas Finzelberg (OSU), 6-3, 7-5
C3: Arjun Kadhe (OSU) def. Sam Shropshire (NW), 5-7, 7-6 (7), 3-3, unf.
C4: Artur Dubinski (OSU) vs. Dominik Stary (NW), 7-6 (1), 6-1
C5: Lucas Gerch (OSU) def. Ben Vandixhorn (NW), 3-6, 6-0, 6-1
C6: Jason Seidman (NW) def. No. 65 Jurence Mendoza (OSU), 6-4, 6-3
The win over the Wildcats (10-1, 0-0 Big Ten) marks the Cowboys' highest-ranked victory since defeating No. 6 Tennessee, 4-2, at the Greenwood Tennis Center in 2014. Friday's victory also means the Cowboys will make their second straight appearance in the tournament's quarterfinals, having previously advanced after a victory over fourth-ranked Baylor in 2008.
"We knew going into today that it was going to be a tough matchup," head coach Jay Udwadia said. "It was really an amazing match that went down to the wire and we were fortunate to be able to come out on top. I think that our guys showed a lot of resiliency and composure, especially being down a break in those final two matches. Those guys showed a lot of grit and were able to beat a team that hadn't lost all season."
The Cowboys, much like they have throughout Udwadia's tenure, used the doubles point to quickly jump in front of the Wildcats on Friday.
Artur Dubinski and Lukas Finzelberg were the first to claim victory for the Pokes, as the pair of right-handers rolled past Northwestern's Chris Ephron and Michael Lorenzini, 6-1, on court three.
Their win was followed up by Julian Cash and Arjun Kadhe, ranked No. 5 in the nation, on court one, who have secured the doubles point for OSU for the fourth time this season.
The All-American tandem was able to take control of the match early on, going up 3-1 over the Wildcat duo thanks to a key break point. The two duos then exchanged serve before Cash spiked a return at the net to lock up the 6-4 win and the doubles point for the Cowboys. Cash and Kadhe's victory marks their 50th win as a tandem and is the 16th time that they have claimed victory this season.
"Doubles is always fast-paced," Udwadia said. "With no-ad scoring you have to start quickly and I thought we were able to do that today. We've had good energy in doubles all season long and I think that we continued to do well in that aspect. It was a very clean doubles point for us."
Oklahoma State is unbeaten this season when it wins the doubles point, posting an 8-0 record in such matches. The Cowboys' triumph in doubles on Friday also marked the first time that Northwestern had been defeated in doubles this season.
As play moved into singles action, Northwestern was able to pick up a win on court six to tie up the match, but Lucas Gerch quickly put the Cowboys back in front with a win on five.
After dropping the first set in his matchup with Ben Vandixhorn, 6-3, Gerch rallied and blazed through the final two sets, 6-0, 6-1, to put OSU back on top, 2-1. The senior has won 11 singles contests this season and holds an impressive 8-1 mark in dual matches this spring.
Artur Dubinski was the next to complete his match, as he pushed the Cowboys' lead to 3-1 with his win on court four. The sophomore won a tiebreak to claim the first set and then pulled away from Dominik Stary in the second set to, 7-6 (1), 6-1. The win marks Dubinski's second collegiate dual-match victory since joining the Cowboys earlier this month.
The Wildcats picked up another win on court two to close the gap to 3-2, but Julian Cash's win on court one proved to be the clincher for Oklahoma State.
Cash stormed through the first set of his matchup with No. 25 Strong Kirchheimer, 6-1, but dropped the second in a tight tiebreak. The Brighton, England native then found himself down a break in the third set, 4-2. With his back against the wall, Cash came alive, winning the final four games, including his first two break points since the first set, to seal the Cowboys' win.
"I thought that Cash showed a lot of grit today," Udwadia said. "Northwestern has three seniors playing one, two and three in their lineup so they're very polished at those positions. You have to work really hard to be able to win those matches and Cash was in battle-mode today."
Cash's win was his ninth of the season and the fifth time that he has defeated a ranked opponent this year.
He and the Cowboys now move on to tomorrow's quarterfinals, where they will face off with the No. 3-seeded Ohio State. Saturday's showdown will mark the second-ever meeting between the two schools.
Tomorrow's quarterfinal matchup is set to begin at 8 a.m. CT at the Boar's Head Sports Club.
(11) Oklahoma State 4, (6) Northwestern 2
Feb. 17, 2017 | Boar's Head Sports Club | Charlottesville, Va.
Doubles (Order of finish: 3, 2, 1)
C1: No. 5 Cash/Kadhe (OSU) def. No. 53 Shropshire/Zieba (NW), 6-4
C2: Kirchheimer/Stary (NW) def. No. 50 Gerch/Mendoza, 6-3
C3: Finzelberg/Dubinski (OSU) def. Ephron/Lorenzini (NW), 6-1
Singles (Order of finish: 6, 5, 4, 2, 1)
C1: No. 32 Julian Cash (OSU) def. No. 25 Strong Kirchheimer (NW), 6-1, 6-7, 6-1
C2: Konrad Zieba (NW) def. No. 48 Lukas Finzelberg (OSU), 6-3, 7-5
C3: Arjun Kadhe (OSU) def. Sam Shropshire (NW), 5-7, 7-6 (7), 3-3, unf.
C4: Artur Dubinski (OSU) vs. Dominik Stary (NW), 7-6 (1), 6-1
C5: Lucas Gerch (OSU) def. Ben Vandixhorn (NW), 3-6, 6-0, 6-1
C6: Jason Seidman (NW) def. No. 65 Jurence Mendoza (OSU), 6-4, 6-3
Players Mentioned
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