Pepperdine University
Duke
#15 Pepperdine Upends #5 Duke, 4-3
3/9/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
March 9, 2012
DURHAM, N.C. - At long last, the Pepperdine men's tennis team earned the elusive win over a top-10 ranked team after downing #5 Duke 4-3 on the road. After a sweep of the doubles point, the Waves earned three wins in singles to clinch the victory. Sebastian Fanselow defeated the #2-ranked singles player in the NCAA to score point No. 4 for Pepperdine.
"Getting the doubles sweep was huge," commented head coach Adam Steinberg. "The doubles point is so crucial, especially against these top teams and it really gave us the momentum we needed in singles."
Alex Llompart (Carolina, Puerto Rico/San Juan Educational School) and Finn Tearney (Wellington, New Zealand/Wellington College), the reigning West Coast Conference Doubles Team of the Month, won their third straight after downing #15 Henrique Cunha and Fred Saba, 8-6. Llompart and Tearney, who are ranked #4 as a pair, are now 5-1 versus doubles teams listed in the top-15.
In the No. 2 spot in the lineup, Fanselow (Essen, Germany/Kaplan College Prep) and Jenson Turner (Woodland Hills, Calif./Campbell Hall HS) secured the doubles point with an 8-4 triumph over David Holland and Chris Mengel.
Not to be outdone, Hugh Clarke (Brisbane, Australia/Brisbane Boys' College) and David Sofaer (Bellevue Hill, Australia/Sydney Distance Education HS) came from behind to beat Torsten Wietoska and Raphael Hemmeler in the tiebreaker.
Although Saba posted a win for the Blue Devils (10-2) to open singles play, Clarke put Pepperdine back on top with a swift 6-2, 6-3 win against Luke Marchese.
"(Hugh) played great and got us on the board right away in singles which was exactly what we needed," continued Steinberg.
Turner suffered a loss while playing at No. 5 for the first time this season, but Tearney put away a straight-set win versus #19-ranked Mengel to tip the scales back in the Waves' favor. Tearney has been a force for Pepperdine, and has won eight of his last nine singles matches.
Two matches were left to decide the outcome of the dual. Fanselow had won his first set, but was deadlocked 4-all with #2-ranked Cunha in the top match, while Llompart had dropped set one and was up 5-4 in the second frame against Hemmeler.
Cunha, who was a perfect 9-0 in singles heading into today, battled with Fanselow all the way to the tiebreaker. The Wave emerged with the victory, after winning the breaker 7-4 to clinch the straight-set victory and the team win for Pepperdine.
"I'm so proud of Sebastian. He has worked so hard to get to this point and he has truly evolved into one of the elite players in college tennis."
This was the junior's second-consecutive win over a top-5 ranked player, having defeated #5 Costin Paval of Oklahoma 6-0, 6-3 on Feb.26.
Llompart held on to take the second set 6-4 and force a third frame, but Hemmeler won 6-2 in set three to give Duke its third and final point of the afternoon.
This is the first win for the Waves (7-6) over a top-10 ranked team since March 19, 2011, when Pepperdine took down #7 Texas A&M 4-3 at home.
Pepperdine split the series with the Blue Devils in 2011, losing 4-3 on the road before winning 4-3 in Malibu.
The Waves continue their pursuit against top-10 ranked teams, competing in a rematch with #8 California, in Durham, N.C., tomorrow at 10 a.m. (PT) The Golden Bears edged Pepperdine, 4-2, at the ITA National Indoor Championships on Feb. 18.
"I told the team right after the match today, we need to stay hungry, and we can't be complacent," responded Steinberg when asked what it would take for his team to win tomorrow. "This is out last road match for a while, and we want to finish on a high note."
#15 Pepperdine 4, #5 Duke 3
Singles
1. #18 Sebastian Fanselow (PEP) def. #2 Henrique Cunha (DUKE) 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
2. #26 Finn Tearney (PEP) def. #19 Chris Mengel (DUKE) 6-2, 6-3
3. Raphael Hemmeler (DUKE) def. #120 Alex Llompart (PEP) 6-3, 4-6, 6-2
4. Fred Saba (DUKE) def. #96 Mousheg Hovhannisyan (PEP) 6-0, 6-0
5. Jason Tahir (DUKE) def. Jenson Turner (PEP) 6-4, 6-2
6. Hugh Clarke (PEP) def. Luke Marchese (DUKE) 6-2, 6-3
Doubles
1. #4 Alex Llompart/Finn Tearney (PEP) def. #15 Henrique Cunha/Fred Saba (DUKE) 8-6
2. Sebastian Fanselow/Jenson Turner (PEP) def. David Holland/Chris Mengel (DUKE) 8-4
3. Hugh Clarke/David Sofaer (PEP) def. Torsten Wietoska/Raphael Hemmeler (DUKE) 9-8 (7-4)
Match Notes:
Pepperdine 7-6; National ranking #15
Duke 10-2; National ranking #5
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (4,6,5,2,1,3)
Players Mentioned
