Friday, May 12
College Station
2:00 PM
Texas A&M
4
vs
0
Buffalo
Photo by: Thomas Campbell/Texas A&M Athletics
Texas A&M Men’s Tennis Defeats Buffalo in NCAA Tournament First Round
May 12, 2017 | Men's Tennis
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The 12th-seeded Texas A&M men's tennis team topped Buffalo, 4-0, at the George P Mitchell Tennis Center in College Station, Texas Friday afternoon in the NCAA Tournament first round. The Aggies improved to 20-6 on the season, advancing to Saturday's second round against No. 24 Oregon at 2 p.m.
With the win, the Aggies claimed their 20th victory of the 2017 season. The 20-win season is the fourth straight for Texas A&M and sixth in Head Coach Steve Denton's 11-seasons at the helm. The Aggies won their opening match of the NCAA Tournament for the 20th straight season and marked the 9th straight season to win round one by the score of 4-0.
The Aggies opened the day claiming the doubles point, picking up 6-3 wins from No. 9 AJ Catanzariti and Arthur Rinderknech along with Aleksandre Bakshi and Max Lunkin. The Bulls took the first doubles match of the day, 6-3, as Willhelm Fridell and Petr Vodak topped Jordi Arconada and Hady Habib on the second court.
Catanzariti and Rinderknech picked up their sixth straight victory, defeating Filip Grbic and Hao Sheng Koay. Bakshi and Lunkin secured the day's first point by defeating Tony Miller and Ethan Nittolo on doubles court three.
The Maroon & White maintained the momentum into singles action, winning first sets on four of six courts. Catanzariti doubled the Texas A&M advantage, topping Grbic 6-3, 7-5 on court three. Points three and four came in quick succession as Bakshi and Rinderknech sealed the Maroon & White win. Bakshi bested Vodak 6-4, 7-5 on court five followed by No. 6 Rinderknech ousted Sheng Koay 6-3, 6-4 on court one.
Oregon advanced to the second round with a 4-2 triumph over Memphis earlier in the day on Friday. The Aggies and Ducks have faced off one time prior to Saturday's match, the Maroon & White are 1-0 all-time against the Pac-12 squad, winning 7-0 in 2003.
The winner of Saturday's match will advance to the NCAA Round of 16 in Athens, Georgia, the Aggies have reached the Sweet 16 fourteen times in the program's history and five times in the past eight seasons.
Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M men's tennis in the field. 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 Game Quotes
Steve Denton, Texas A&M Men's Tennis Head Coach
Thoughts on the match...
"This was the first time in a while that I think we've had a four seed that came in here like this and I knew that they were going to give us a hard time. I knew about the effort and attitude from Buffalo. They were going work hard and play gritty. I knew we were going to have a fight on our hands. I'm hopeful that this will actually works in our favor. We had to dig down, and dig deep today to get that win. Doubles was certainly a question. They tested us in all the matches. There were no easy matches. The hard part about the season is that in the last couple weeks we've only played a couple matches and to get a tough match under our belt will help us."
On what it took to win...
"Our guys had to work. There's no doubt about it. They came to play and you have to give them a lot of credit. Our guys stepped up. It felt like an NCAA tournament match. Our guys our going to have to elevate their play if they want to advance."
On facing Oregon on Saturday...
"They are good everywhere, doubles singles. They are going to be a tough test for us here tomorrow. They've had a successful year facing Pac-12 teams and we have not fared very well against Pac-12 teams here in the past. Hopefully we'll have a different result here on Saturday. Our guys are going have to come out and compete hard if we want to get to Athens."
Tennis Match Results
Buffalo vs Texas A&M
May 12, 2017 at College Station, TX
(George P Mitchell Tennis Center)
#13 Texas A&M 4, Buffalo 0
Singles competition
1. #6 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. Hao Sheng Koay (BUFF) 6-3, 6-4
2. #48 Jordi Arconada (TAMU) vs. Vidit Vaghela (BUFF) 7-5, 5-2, unfinished
3. AJ Catanzariti (TAMU) def. Filip Grbic (BUFF) 6-3, 7-5
4. Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) vs. Villhelm Fridell (BUFF) 5-7, 3-5, unfinished
5. Aleksandre Bakshi (TAMU) def. Petr Vodak (BUFF) 6-4, 7-5
6. Max Lunkin (TAMU) vs. Ethan Nittolo (BUFF) 3-6, 7-5, 2-0, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. #9 AJ Catanzariti/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. Filip Grbic/Hao Sheng Koay (BUFF) 6-3
2. Villhelm Fridell/Petr Vodak (BUFF) def. Jordi Arconada/Hady Habib (TAMU) 6-3
3. Aleksandre Bakshi/Max Lunkin (TAMU) def. Tony Miller/Ethan Nittolo (BUFF) 6-3
Match Notes:
Buffalo 14-6
Texas A&M 20-6; National ranking #13
Order of finish: Doubles (2, 1, 3); Singles (3, 5, 1)
NCAA Division 1 Men's Tennis Championship
First Round
College Station Regional
T-2:14 A-276
With the win, the Aggies claimed their 20th victory of the 2017 season. The 20-win season is the fourth straight for Texas A&M and sixth in Head Coach Steve Denton's 11-seasons at the helm. The Aggies won their opening match of the NCAA Tournament for the 20th straight season and marked the 9th straight season to win round one by the score of 4-0.
The Aggies opened the day claiming the doubles point, picking up 6-3 wins from No. 9 AJ Catanzariti and Arthur Rinderknech along with Aleksandre Bakshi and Max Lunkin. The Bulls took the first doubles match of the day, 6-3, as Willhelm Fridell and Petr Vodak topped Jordi Arconada and Hady Habib on the second court.
Catanzariti and Rinderknech picked up their sixth straight victory, defeating Filip Grbic and Hao Sheng Koay. Bakshi and Lunkin secured the day's first point by defeating Tony Miller and Ethan Nittolo on doubles court three.
The Maroon & White maintained the momentum into singles action, winning first sets on four of six courts. Catanzariti doubled the Texas A&M advantage, topping Grbic 6-3, 7-5 on court three. Points three and four came in quick succession as Bakshi and Rinderknech sealed the Maroon & White win. Bakshi bested Vodak 6-4, 7-5 on court five followed by No. 6 Rinderknech ousted Sheng Koay 6-3, 6-4 on court one.
Oregon advanced to the second round with a 4-2 triumph over Memphis earlier in the day on Friday. The Aggies and Ducks have faced off one time prior to Saturday's match, the Maroon & White are 1-0 all-time against the Pac-12 squad, winning 7-0 in 2003.
The winner of Saturday's match will advance to the NCAA Round of 16 in Athens, Georgia, the Aggies have reached the Sweet 16 fourteen times in the program's history and five times in the past eight seasons.
Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M men's tennis in the field. 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 Game Quotes
Steve Denton, Texas A&M Men's Tennis Head Coach
Thoughts on the match...
"This was the first time in a while that I think we've had a four seed that came in here like this and I knew that they were going to give us a hard time. I knew about the effort and attitude from Buffalo. They were going work hard and play gritty. I knew we were going to have a fight on our hands. I'm hopeful that this will actually works in our favor. We had to dig down, and dig deep today to get that win. Doubles was certainly a question. They tested us in all the matches. There were no easy matches. The hard part about the season is that in the last couple weeks we've only played a couple matches and to get a tough match under our belt will help us."
On what it took to win...
"Our guys had to work. There's no doubt about it. They came to play and you have to give them a lot of credit. Our guys stepped up. It felt like an NCAA tournament match. Our guys our going to have to elevate their play if they want to advance."
On facing Oregon on Saturday...
"They are good everywhere, doubles singles. They are going to be a tough test for us here tomorrow. They've had a successful year facing Pac-12 teams and we have not fared very well against Pac-12 teams here in the past. Hopefully we'll have a different result here on Saturday. Our guys are going have to come out and compete hard if we want to get to Athens."
Tennis Match Results
Buffalo vs Texas A&M
May 12, 2017 at College Station, TX
(George P Mitchell Tennis Center)
#13 Texas A&M 4, Buffalo 0
Singles competition
1. #6 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. Hao Sheng Koay (BUFF) 6-3, 6-4
2. #48 Jordi Arconada (TAMU) vs. Vidit Vaghela (BUFF) 7-5, 5-2, unfinished
3. AJ Catanzariti (TAMU) def. Filip Grbic (BUFF) 6-3, 7-5
4. Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) vs. Villhelm Fridell (BUFF) 5-7, 3-5, unfinished
5. Aleksandre Bakshi (TAMU) def. Petr Vodak (BUFF) 6-4, 7-5
6. Max Lunkin (TAMU) vs. Ethan Nittolo (BUFF) 3-6, 7-5, 2-0, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. #9 AJ Catanzariti/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. Filip Grbic/Hao Sheng Koay (BUFF) 6-3
2. Villhelm Fridell/Petr Vodak (BUFF) def. Jordi Arconada/Hady Habib (TAMU) 6-3
3. Aleksandre Bakshi/Max Lunkin (TAMU) def. Tony Miller/Ethan Nittolo (BUFF) 6-3
Match Notes:
Buffalo 14-6
Texas A&M 20-6; National ranking #13
Order of finish: Doubles (2, 1, 3); Singles (3, 5, 1)
NCAA Division 1 Men's Tennis Championship
First Round
College Station Regional
T-2:14 A-276
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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