Michigan
Notre Dame
Wolverines Shut Out Notre Dame to Advance to NCAA Round of 16
5/13/2018 4:17:00 PM | Men's Tennis
» Michigan advances to the Round of 16 for the first time since 2008 and the fourth time since 1980.
» U-M posted back-to-back shutouts for the third time this season.
» Senior Davis Crocker continued his hot streak and extended his winning streak to six matches.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Varsity Tennis Center)
Event: NCAA Regional (Second Round)
Score: #15 Michigan 4, #25 Notre Dame 0
Records: U-M (22-5), ND (19-14)
Next U-M Event: Friday, May 18 -- vs. UCLAÂ - NCAA Round of 16 (Winston-Salem, N.C.), 9 a.m.
• Photo Gallery
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 15-ranked University of Michigan men's tennis team advanced to the NCAA Team Championship on Sunday (May 13) by defeating No. 25-ranked Notre Dame, 4-0, in the NCAA second round at the Varsity Tennis Center. The Wolverines took the doubles point and won three close singles matches in succession to blank the Fighting Irish for the second time this season.
Michigan jumped out to an early victory at No. 1 doubles, where junior Myles Schalet and sophomore Connor Johnston rolled to a 6-2 victory, while Notre Dame took a tough 6-4 win over senior Runhao Hua and freshman Mattias Siimar at No. 2. The doubles point came down to the match at No. 3, which needed a tiebreaker to be decided. It was ultimately the Wolverines who prevailed, with senior Alex Knight and freshman Harrison Brown dominating the tiebreaker to win 7-6(1) and give the first point of the match to Michigan.
Senior Davis Crocker took the first singles victory for the Maize and Blue, winning in straight sets at No. 6, 6-2, 6-4. Siimar followed suit at No. 4, taking his match in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3, to give U-M a 3-0 lead in the match. The clinching fourth point proved to be just as difficult to obtain in singles as it was in doubles, with each of the four remaining matches going to a third set. It was Schalet at No. 3 who ended up clawing back from a tough first set to win the match for the Wolverines, winning by a score of 2-6, 7-5, 6-2. The winning point was a powerful serve up the middle that Notre Dame's Guillermo Cabrera was not able to return into the court.
The remaining three matches were close when the match was finished. At No. 1, Knight dropped the first set in a tiebreaker, won the second and was down in the third when the match ended. At No. 5 senior Carter Lin won the first set, dropped the second and was also down in the third when the team match was won. Hua was in the tightest match of the day, winning the first set in a tiebreaker before dropping the second, 5-7. Hua was also down in the third set upon match completion.
Michigan moves on to the NCAA Team Championship Round of 16 for the first time since 2008. The NCAA Tournament will be played at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where Michigan will square off with the No. 2-seeded UCLA Bruins on Friday (May 18) at 9 a.m.
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 17 Alex Knight (U-M) vs. No. 34 Alex Lebedev (ND), 6-7(4), 6-2, 1-4 unfinished
No. 2 -- No. 47 Runhao Hua (U-M) vs. Richard Ciamarra (ND), 7-6(4), 5-7, 2-3 unfinished
No. 3 -- Myles Schalet (U-M) d. Guillermo Cabrera (ND), 2-6, 7-5, 6-2
No. 4 -- Mattias Siimar (U-M) d. Matt Gamble (ND), 6-4, 6-3
No. 5 -- Carter Lin (U-M) vs. Tristan McCormick (ND), 7-5, 3-6, 4-5 unfinished
No. 6 -- Davis Crocker (U-M) d. William Howells (ND), 6-2, 6-4
Doubles
No. 1 -- Myles Schalet/Connor Johnston (U-M) d. No. 49 Brendon Kempin/Tristan McCormick (ND), 6-2
No. 2 -- William Howells/Alex Lebedev (ND) d. No. 73 Runhao Hua/Mattias Siimar (U-M), 6-4
No. 3 -- Alex Knight/Harrison Brown (U-M) d. Matt Gamble/Richard Ciamarra (ND), 7-6(1)
Order of Completion: Doubles 1-2-3, Singles 6-4-3
Players Mentioned
