Monday, March 28
College Station
6:00 PM
Texas A&M
3
vs
4
TCU
Photo by: Sam Craft/Texas A&M Athletics
Aggies Pick up Trio of Ranked Wins, Fall to TCU
Mar 28, 2016 | Men's Tennis
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The No. 7 Texas A&M men's tennis team claimed a trio of ranked wins despite falling 4-3 to No. 3 TCU Monday night at the George P. Mitchell Tennis Center in College Station, Texas. With the loss, the Aggies fell to 20-6 on the season while the Horned Frogs improved to 15-2 this spring.
The maroon and white picked up the doubles point to begin the scoring on the evening. Junior Max Lunkin and sophomore Arthur Rinderknech topped Trevor Johnson and Guillermo Nunez, 6-2, on court two followed shortly by Alex Rybakov and Cameron Norrie besting sophomore Jordi Arconada and senior Shane Vinsant, 7-5, on court three. With the point in the balance, senior Jackson Withrow and freshman Aleksandre Bakshi were up to the task, claiming the first of three ranked victories for the Aggies on Monday. The point clinching duo defeated No. 67 Hudson Blake and Reese Stalder 7-6(3) on court one.
The two teams split first sets in singles play, as the Horned Frogs took their first lead of the day with wins from Johnson over Bakshi, 6-4, 6-3, on court six and No. 54 Nunez over No. 90 Arconada, 6-4, 6-4, on court three. Withrow leveled the match at 2-2 as he picked up the second ranked win for the Aggies on the day. The Omaha, Nebraska native defeated No. 103 Eduardo Nava, 6-3, 6-4, on court four.
Team stayed level after No. 18 Rinderknech bested No. 15 Rybakov, 6-3, 6-4 on court two and No. 3 Norrie topped No. 45 Vinsant 7-6(5), 6-3 on court one. With the match tied at 3-3, all attention at the Mitchell Tennis Center shifted to court five. Jerry Lopez and Lunkin were all-square in a third-set with the victor claiming both the singles match and the team victory.
The match stayed on serve for most of the third-set, before a tie-breaker was required at 6-6. Both players made shots and had opportunities to clinch the match, but in the end Lopez was able to make a couple extra plays and defeat Lunkin 12-10 in the breaker.
A&M will return to SEC play this weekend at the Mitchell Tennis Center as No. 11 Georgia and No. 65 South Carolina come to town. The Aggies and Bulldogs will face off at 6 p.m. Friday, April 1, followed by a Sunday 11 a.m. showdown with the Gamecocks. UT-Arlington and A&M will face off at 4:30 p.m. Sunday as well.
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.
Post Match Quotes
Texas A&M Head Coach, Steve Denton
On the matchup with TCU…
"The match was a close as it could get, 3-3 with the last match going into tiebreaker. Give credit to Jerry Lopez of TCU, he played tremendous in the tiebreaker. I was really proud of Max and how he played and competed against a really good player from TCU. He just kept hanging in there and fighting, but unfortunately it did not go our way tonight. I think our team grew up a little bit, playing against a team like that. It should give our guys a little bit of confidence, even though they are a little disappointed right now. TCU is a team that can compete for a national championship and with the way we fought them tonight, I told the team why can't' we compete at that level moving forward."
On Arthur's win…
"That was good for Arthur, he had been struggling a little bit playing at the top of the lineup against everyone else's best players. So it was nice to see him get back on track and get a little more aggressive. Nice to see him play the type of tennis he needs to play to be successful. I was pleased with his effort and it was good for him and his confidence as he has been playing a bunch of really good players."
On Jackson's night…
"Jackson continues to play well with house money. With his extra semester that he got from his waiver it is like every day is Christmas. He played well in the doubles, he lifted his game and Alex in the tiebreaker to get us that doubles point. He carried that over into a match against a really good player in Eduardo Nava. I'm pleased with his effort, he is a tough match up because the variation he can play with and the athleticism in his game. I'm happy he continues the have the success that he has had to start this spring.
#3 TCU 4, #7 Texas A&M 3
Singles competition
1. #3 Cameron Norrie (TCU) def. #45 Shane Vinsant (TAMU) 7-6 (7-5), 6-3
2. #18 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. #15 Alex Rybakov (TCU) 6-3, 6-4
3. #54 Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) def. #90 Jordi Arconada (TAMU) 6-4, 6-4
4. Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. #103 Eduardo Nava (TCU) 6-3, 6-4
5. Jerry Lopez (TCU) def. Max Lunkin (TAMU) 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (12-10)
6. Trevor Johnson (TCU) def. Aleksandre Bakshi (TAMU) 6-4, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. Aleksandre Bakshi/Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. #67 Hudson Blake/Reese Stalder (TCU) 7-6 (7-3)
2. Max Lunkin/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. Trevor Johnson/Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) 6-2
3. Alex Rybakov/Cameron Norrie (TCU) def. Jordi Arconada/Shane Vinsant (TAMU) 7-5
Match Notes:
TCU 15-2; National ranking #3
Texas A&M 20-6; National ranking #7
Order of finish: Doubles (2, 3, 1); Singles (6, 3, 4, 2, 1, 5)
T-3:15 A-288
The maroon and white picked up the doubles point to begin the scoring on the evening. Junior Max Lunkin and sophomore Arthur Rinderknech topped Trevor Johnson and Guillermo Nunez, 6-2, on court two followed shortly by Alex Rybakov and Cameron Norrie besting sophomore Jordi Arconada and senior Shane Vinsant, 7-5, on court three. With the point in the balance, senior Jackson Withrow and freshman Aleksandre Bakshi were up to the task, claiming the first of three ranked victories for the Aggies on Monday. The point clinching duo defeated No. 67 Hudson Blake and Reese Stalder 7-6(3) on court one.
The two teams split first sets in singles play, as the Horned Frogs took their first lead of the day with wins from Johnson over Bakshi, 6-4, 6-3, on court six and No. 54 Nunez over No. 90 Arconada, 6-4, 6-4, on court three. Withrow leveled the match at 2-2 as he picked up the second ranked win for the Aggies on the day. The Omaha, Nebraska native defeated No. 103 Eduardo Nava, 6-3, 6-4, on court four.
Team stayed level after No. 18 Rinderknech bested No. 15 Rybakov, 6-3, 6-4 on court two and No. 3 Norrie topped No. 45 Vinsant 7-6(5), 6-3 on court one. With the match tied at 3-3, all attention at the Mitchell Tennis Center shifted to court five. Jerry Lopez and Lunkin were all-square in a third-set with the victor claiming both the singles match and the team victory.
The match stayed on serve for most of the third-set, before a tie-breaker was required at 6-6. Both players made shots and had opportunities to clinch the match, but in the end Lopez was able to make a couple extra plays and defeat Lunkin 12-10 in the breaker.
A&M will return to SEC play this weekend at the Mitchell Tennis Center as No. 11 Georgia and No. 65 South Carolina come to town. The Aggies and Bulldogs will face off at 6 p.m. Friday, April 1, followed by a Sunday 11 a.m. showdown with the Gamecocks. UT-Arlington and A&M will face off at 4:30 p.m. Sunday as well.
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.
Post Match Quotes
Texas A&M Head Coach, Steve Denton
On the matchup with TCU…
"The match was a close as it could get, 3-3 with the last match going into tiebreaker. Give credit to Jerry Lopez of TCU, he played tremendous in the tiebreaker. I was really proud of Max and how he played and competed against a really good player from TCU. He just kept hanging in there and fighting, but unfortunately it did not go our way tonight. I think our team grew up a little bit, playing against a team like that. It should give our guys a little bit of confidence, even though they are a little disappointed right now. TCU is a team that can compete for a national championship and with the way we fought them tonight, I told the team why can't' we compete at that level moving forward."
On Arthur's win…
"That was good for Arthur, he had been struggling a little bit playing at the top of the lineup against everyone else's best players. So it was nice to see him get back on track and get a little more aggressive. Nice to see him play the type of tennis he needs to play to be successful. I was pleased with his effort and it was good for him and his confidence as he has been playing a bunch of really good players."
On Jackson's night…
"Jackson continues to play well with house money. With his extra semester that he got from his waiver it is like every day is Christmas. He played well in the doubles, he lifted his game and Alex in the tiebreaker to get us that doubles point. He carried that over into a match against a really good player in Eduardo Nava. I'm pleased with his effort, he is a tough match up because the variation he can play with and the athleticism in his game. I'm happy he continues the have the success that he has had to start this spring.
#3 TCU 4, #7 Texas A&M 3
Singles competition
1. #3 Cameron Norrie (TCU) def. #45 Shane Vinsant (TAMU) 7-6 (7-5), 6-3
2. #18 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. #15 Alex Rybakov (TCU) 6-3, 6-4
3. #54 Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) def. #90 Jordi Arconada (TAMU) 6-4, 6-4
4. Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. #103 Eduardo Nava (TCU) 6-3, 6-4
5. Jerry Lopez (TCU) def. Max Lunkin (TAMU) 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (12-10)
6. Trevor Johnson (TCU) def. Aleksandre Bakshi (TAMU) 6-4, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. Aleksandre Bakshi/Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. #67 Hudson Blake/Reese Stalder (TCU) 7-6 (7-3)
2. Max Lunkin/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. Trevor Johnson/Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) 6-2
3. Alex Rybakov/Cameron Norrie (TCU) def. Jordi Arconada/Shane Vinsant (TAMU) 7-5
Match Notes:
TCU 15-2; National ranking #3
Texas A&M 20-6; National ranking #7
Order of finish: Doubles (2, 3, 1); Singles (6, 3, 4, 2, 1, 5)
T-3:15 A-288
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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