Norfolk, Va. - The Old Dominion University men’s tennis team won today in thrilling fashion against the No. 64 College of Charleston Cougars at the Folkes-Steven Indoor Tennis Center. ODU came from behind after losing the doubles point early in the match and dropping an early singles match at No. 6. The Monarchs had four players take their matches to a third set, and won three out of the four. With the win, the Monarchs improve to 12-5 on the year, while the Cougars fall to 10-5. This was Old Dominion’s first win over a ranked opponent since February 3, 2013 when the Monarchs Defeated No. 28 Harvard 4-3.
The Monarchs fought hard in doubles but came up just short in two out of three games. The No. 1 double’s team of Jonas Kuwert and Dante Terenzio were winning their match-up against Brice Allanic and Charlie Ghriskey (7-6) when the clinch rule was used.
No. 71 Carlos Lopez Villa lengthened his winning streak to 5 matches with a straight sets victory over Brice Allanic (6-0, 6-0), where he did not give up a game. Villa is 16-1 on the season, his only loss coming to Yales’s No. 114 Tyler Lu on March 2.
Next, after dropping the first set, Jonas Kuwert ultimately prevailed taking the second and third set convincingly against Charlie Ghriskey (4-6, 6-3, 6-3). The Monarchs were down 3-2 with two matches left and could not afford another loss.
It was then that Koen Wiggemans who was down in the third set came back with two late break points to send the match to a tiebreaker. Wiggemans managed to fight off four match points to earn the victory over Zack Lewis (6-3, 0-6, 7-6 (12-10)).
With his team’s fate on the line, Zvonimir Podvinski got out to an early lead over his opponent Crescente Lesser (2-6, 7-5, 6-4) in the third set. Podvinski went on to say, ”I was up 4-1 and I saw my teammates on the empty court beside me which gave me a lot of energy. Today, I think we played for each other.” Podvinski went onto win the match, which lifted the Monarchs over the No. 64 Cougars.
Head Coach Aljosa Piric commented, “It was a very good win against a very good Charleston team. We played very well for each other and I am very pleased with the team’s effort. This win gives us confidence, by knowing we can beat a nationally ranked team and that we are right there with those nationally ranked teams. We were down 3-2 and Koen was down 5-2 in the third set, but Koen wasn’t going to give up and fought all the way until the end. ‘Z’ did really well clinching for us today. He has had some close matches in the past and this was a big match for him personally and for us as a team.”
The Monarchs will be back in action next weekend at the Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center against two former CAA rivals. On Saturday, March 29, the Monarchs will square off against UNCW at 12:00 p.m. On Sunday, March 30, Old Dominion will face James Madison University at 11:00 a.m.
Final Score ODU: 4 CofC: 3
Doubles:
1. Jonas Kuwert/Dante Terenzio (ODU) dnf. Brice Allanic/Charlie Ghriskey (CC) 7-6
2. ZackLewis/Alon Faiman (CC) d. Zvoninmir Podvinski/Koen Wiggemans (ODU) 8-5
3. Rodrigo Encinas/Crescente Lesser (CC) d. Carlos Lopez-Villa/Abdoulaye Camara (ODU) 8-5
Singles:
1. No. 71 Carlos Lopez-Villa (ODU) d. Brice Allanic (CC) 6-0, 6-0
2. Rodrigo Encinas (CC) d. Dante Terenzio (ODU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
3. Zvonimir Podvinski (ODU) d. Cresente Lesser (CC) 2-6, 7-5, 6-4
4. Jonas Kuwert (ODU) d. Charlie Ghriskey (CC) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
5. Koen Wiggemans (ODU) d. Zack Lewis (CC) 6-3, 0-6, 7-6(12-10)
6. Alon Faiman (CC) d. Abdoulaye Camara (ODU) 7-5, 6-2
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