The University of Louisville men’s tennis team got singles points from sophomore Brandon Lancaster and freshman Parker Wynn, but fell 4-2 at No. 13 Northwestern Sunday at Combe Tennis Center.
“The seventh- ranked team (TCU) came to Northwestern and lost by the same score that we did,” said UofL head coach Rex Ecarma. “Northwestern with its three super seniors are on their way to a special season. Still, we were in a good position to upset the 13th ranked team on the road and I know we can player better. This team showed a lot of promise, but did not achieve the upset that we came here to get.”
The Wildcats (3-0) took an early lead with doubles wins at Nos. 2 and 3. On court three, sophomore Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff and junior Nicolas Rouanet fell 6-3 to Chris Ephron and Michael Lorenzin while sophomores George Hedley and Brandon Lancaster lost by the same score to Strong Kircheimer and Dominik Stary at the two-spot.
On court one, Louisville senior Sean Donohue and freshman Parker Wynn were up 5-4 and serving when their match was halted due to the point being clinched.
In singles, Stary gave the Wildcats a 2-0 lead when he beat Donohue 6-0, 6-2 at No. 4. Lancaster put the Cardinals on the scoreboard at the five-spot where he defeated Ben Vandixhorn 6-3, 6-3. Northwestern answered on court two when Konrad Zieba topped Rouanet 6-3, 6-2. At the No. 5 position, Wynn pushed his singles win streak to seven s with a 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 decision against Sam Shropshire at No. 3 to bring the score to 3-2.
The match was decided on court six where freshman Clement Filho defeated Jason Seidman 7-5 in the first set, but fell 6-1, 6-1 in the next two to make the final score 4-2.
At the top seed, Morin-Kougoucheff rebounded from a 6-1 first set loss to 26th-ranked Kirchheimer to take the second set 6-4. The Louisville sophomore was trailing 6-5 and serving when the match was suspended.
The Cardinals (2-1) return to action on Feb. 3 when they play host to Alabama A&M and Purdue at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center.
#13 Northwestern 4, Louisville 2
Jan 22, 2017 at Evanston, Ill.
(Combe Tennis Center)
Singles
1. #26 Strong Kirchheimer (NU) vs. C. Morin-Kougoucheff (LOU) 6-1, 4-6, 6-5, unfinished
2. Konrad Zieba (NU) def. Nicolas Rouanet (LOU) 6-3, 6-2
3. Parker Wynn (LOU) def. Sam Shropshire (NU) 1-6, 6-3, 6-4
4. Dominik Stary (NU) def. Sean Donohue (LOU-) 6-0, 6-2
5. Brandon Lancaster (LOU) def. Ben Vandixhorn (NU) 6-3, 6-3
6. Jason Seidman (NU) def. Clement Filho (LOU-MT) 5-7, 6-1, 6-1
Order of finish: (4,5,2,3,6)
Doubles
1. Sam Shropshire/Konrad Zieba (NU) vs. Sean Donohue/Parker Wynn (LOU) 4-5, unfinished
2. Strong Kirchheimer/Dominik Stary (NU) def. George Hedley/Brandon Lancaster (LOU) 6-3
3. Chris Ephron/Michael Lorenzini (NU) def. C. Morin-Kougoucheff/Nicolas Rouanet (LOU) 6-3
Order of finish: 3,2)
Match Notes:
Louisville 2-1
Northwestern 3-0; National ranking #13
Official: John Coleman T-3:04 A-117
Lori Korte
Assistant Sports Information Director
University of Louisville Athletics