Pepperdine University
Washington
Waves Shut Out Washington, Win Eighth Straight
3/21/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
March 21, 2012
MALIBU, Calif. - The #8-ranked Pepperdine men's tennis team won its eighth-straight match with a 7-0 shutout victory over #17 Washington. The Waves cruised through doubles before grinding out several closely contested matches in singles play.
"That was the closest 7-0 match I've ever been a part of," said head coach Adam Steinberg. "Give credit to Washington, they are a good team, and the final score didn't indicate how close that match really was.
"I was proud that we were able to come through on every court. The guys are feeling good about themselves after a win like that, and it gives us some good momentum for the match next week against Stanford."
With the "W," Pepperdine improves to 11-6 on the season, while Washington falls to 11-3.
The Waves got off to a blazing start, winning all three doubles matches in under 45-minutes time. Sebastian Fanselow (Essen, Germany/Kaplan College Prep) and Jenson Turner (Woodland Hills, Calif./Campbell Hall HS) built upon an early lead to win 8-2 against Viktor Farkas and Jeff Hawke.
#75-ranked Hugh Clarke (Brisbane, Australia/Brisbane Boys' College) and David Sofaer (Bellevue Hill, Australia/Sydney Distance Education HS) won their fifth-straight with an 8-3 triumph versus Marton Bots and Matt Stith.
Alex Llompart (Carolina, Puerto Rico/San Juan Educational School) and Finn Tearney (Wellington, New Zealand/Wellington College), ranked #3 in the NCAA, secured the sweep with an 8-4 win over #63 Emmett Egger and Kyle McMurrow.
The Huskies did not go away quietly in singles, however, winning three of the six opening sets.
Clarke put the Waves up 2-0, defeating Nicholas Kamisar 7-5, 6-1.
Tearney took the first set against Egger 6-1, but Egger battled all the way to the tiebreaker in the second frame. The Wave came out on top in the tiebreaker, winning 7-3 to give Pepperdine a 3-0 lead.
The Huskies were up a set in three of the final four matches. Bots won 6-4 in the first set, but Llompart answered with a 6-3 win in set two. With the momentum in his favor, Llompart put the match away 6-1 in the third to put point No. 4 on the board for the Waves.
Mousheg Hovhannisyan (North Hollywood, Calif./Continental Academy) suffered a 6-2 setback in the opening stanza, but won 6-4, 6-4 in the final two sets.
After Sofaer and Hawke each claimed a set, the two battled game-for-game until the score was knotted at six. Sofaer shined in the tiebreaker, winning 7-2.
Fanselow clinched the sweep for Pepperdine with a three-set win in the top match. Fanselow fell behind 5-2 in the opening set, but fought his way back 6-5 against #17 McMorrow. The comeback fell short, however, as McMurrow put the set away 7-5.
The loss did not slow Fanselow down, however, who won the next two stanzas 6-3, 6-3. The junior is now on a six-match win streak and is 7-1 versus ranked opponents this dual season.
The Waves defend their seven-match win streak on Wednesday, March 28 when they welcome #10-ranked Stanford to the courts of the Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center for a 1 p.m. match.
#8 Pepperdine 7, #17 Washington 0
Singles
1. #11 Sebastian Fanselow (PEP) def. #17 Kyle McMorrow (UW) 5-7, 6-3, 6-3
2. #19 Finn Tearney (PEP) def. Emmett Egger (UW) 6-1, 7-6 (7-3)
3. Alex Llompart (PEP) def. Marton Bots (UW) 4-6, 6-3, 6-1
4. #76 Mousheg Hovhannisyan (PEP) def. Viktor Farkas (UW) 2-6, 6-4, 6-4
5. Hugh Clarke (PEP) def. Nicholas Kamisar (UW) 7-5, 6-1
6. David Sofaer (PEP) def. Jeff Hawke (UW) 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7-2)
Doubles
1. #3 Finn Tearney/Alex Llompart (PEP) def. #63 Emmett Egger/Kyle McMorrow (UW) 8-4
2. Sebastian Fanselow/Jenson Turner (PEP) def. Viktor Farkas/Jeff Hawke (UW) 8-2
3. #75 Hugh Clarke/David Sofaer (PEP) def. Marton Bots/Matt Stith (UW) 8-3
Match Notes:
Washington 11-3; National ranking #17
Pepperdine 11-6; National ranking #8
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (5,2,3,4,6,1)
Players Mentioned
