No. 3 Texas A&M Men’s Tennis Defeats No. 4 Baylor

WACO, Texas – The No. 3 Texas A&M men's tennis team defeated No. 4 Baylor, 4-2, Wednesday evening at the Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center in Waco, Tx. The Aggies improved to 5-0 on the season, while the Bears fell to 5-1.
 
With the win the Aggies improved to 34-20-1 all-time in the Battle of the Brazos. Wednesday's defeat was just the second loss for the Bears inside the Hawkins Center since it opened in 2013, falling to 20-2 all-time at the facility.
 
For the fifth straight match the Aggies captured the doubles point to open the match. Sophomore Arthur Rinderknech and senior Jackson Withrow were the first off the court with a dominating 6-1 win on doubles court two over Max Tchoutakian and Tommy Podvinski, moving to 4-0 as a pair this season. Seniors Harrison Adams and Shane Vinsant fell 6-2 to Julian Lenz and Will Little on the first doubles court, the loss was the first dual doubles defeat on the season for an Aggie doubles team.
 
With the day's first point on the line, No. 29 Jordi Arconada and Max Lunkin were up to the task. After picking up an early break to take a 2-1 lead, the Bear duo squared the match at four-all. The maroon and white clad pair broke to take a 5-4, followed by securing the point on Lunkin's serve. The sophomore/junior partnership improved to 3-0 in duals and 6-1 on the season as the defeated Felipe Rios and Jimmy Bendeck.
 
The two top-five teams split first sets across all six singes courts, but the Aggies increased the lead to 2-0 as No. 29 Vinsant defeated No. 59 Tchoutakian 6-4, 6-4 on court two. The New Braunfels native improved to 10-4 this year, with four wins over ranked opponents and a 3-0 mark in duals.
 
Withrow pushed the Bears to the brink of defeat with a 6-2, 6-4 win on court six over Podvinski., to remain perfect on the spring season at 3-0. The Bears clawed back into the match as Lenz defeated No. 5 Rinderknech 6-4, 6-1 on court one and Rios defeated Arconada 7-5, 6-4 on court three.
 
As the match neared a conclusion, Adams and sophomore AJ Catanzariti were in a race to clinch the match for the Aggies. Adams marched back from a 6-3 first set defeat at the hands of Little, but claimed 11 of the next 16 games to lead 5-2 in the third set. Before Adams could serve for the victory, Catanzariti clinched the win for A&M 6-3, 7-6(3) on court five over Bendeck. The Pittsburgh native stands at 7-4 on the season and 3-0 in duals.
 
The Aggies return to play with a pair of double headers at the Mitchell Tennis Center this weekend. The action begins Friday at noon as the maroon and white take on UTRGV, followed by a 6 p.m. match up against No. 28 Florida State. Sunday the Aggies face No. 13 South Florida at noon before concluding the four-match home stand against St. Edward's at 4:30 p.m.

Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M men's tennis. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the A&M men's tennis team on Twitter by following @AggieMTEN or on Facebook at Facebook.com/AggieMensTennis.
 


#3 Texas A&M 4, #4 Baylor 2
Feb 03, 2016 at Waco, Texas
Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center
 
Singles competition
1. Julian Lenz (BU) def. #5 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) 6-4, 6-1
2. #29 Shane Vinsant (TAMU) def. #59 Max Tchoutakian (BU) 6-4, 6-4
3. Felipe Rios (BU) def. Jordi Arconada (TAMU) 7-5, 6-4
4. Will Little (BU) vs. Harrison Adams (TAMU) 6-2, 3-6, 2-5, unfinished
5. AJ Catanzariti (TAMU) def. Jimmy Bendeck (BU) 6-3, 7-6 (7-3)
6. Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. Tommy Podvinski (BU) 6-2, 6-4
 
Doubles competition
1. Julian Lenz/Will Little (BU) def. Harrison Adams/Shane Vinsant (TAMU) 6-2
2. Arthur Rinderknech/Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. Max Tchoutakian/Tommy Podvinski (BU) 6-1
3. #29 Max Lunkin/Jordi Arconada (TAMU) def. Felipe Rios/Jimmy Bendeck (BU) 6-4
 
Match Notes:
Texas A&M 5-0; National ranking #3
Baylor 5-1; National ranking #4
Order of finish: Doubles (2, 1, 3); Singles (2, 6, 1, 3, 5)