Tulane University
South Alabama (NCAA)
Green Wave Men's Tennis WIns Regional Championship
May 11, 2003 | Men's Tennis
May 11, 2003
NEW ORLEANS, La. - For the first time in school history, the Tulane men's tennis team has won an NCAA Regional Championship. The Green Wave, making its seventh straight trip to the NCAA Tournament, won a hard-fought match over 56th-ranked South Alabama on Sunday afternoon at the Goldring Tennis Center.
Tulane, ranked No. 15 in the nation, will play fourth-ranked Stanford in the NCAA Round of 16 on Saturday. It is the furthest Tulane has advanced since NCAA Regional play began in 1977. The Green Wave won the NCAA Championship in 1959.
Tulane (21-5) clinched the 4-1 victory when senior Mattias Westerberg battled back in his second set and wore down South Alabama's Pavel Mazaev at No. 4 singles, 6-3, 6-4. Mazaev fought the heat and fatigue as much as he battled the tireless Westerberg, who was content to sit back and return shot after shot, wearing down his foe.
"It was so hot and humid today," Westerberg said. "I have never played in conditions this bad. I was so tired, but I knew he was more tired. I wanted to make him know he had to work for each and every point."
On multiple occasions, Mazaev fell to his knees in exhaustion during the match.
"I am very proud of my team," Tulane coach Robert Klein said. "We played every point today and we competed well up-and-down the lineup, just like we have all year. We had contributions from everyone."
Tulane had opened the match strong before the crowd of over 400 fans, as Michael Kogan and Victor Romero cruised to an 8-3 victory at No. 1 doubles. The victory for the Wave duo, ranked No. 5 in the nation, was its 15th in a row and it also snapped an 11-match winning streak for the Jaguar pair of Heinrich Heyl and Clinton Jacobs.
 Coach Robert Klein gets caught by the water cooler after his Green Wave squad won its first regional championship in history.  | |
However, after winning the top flight doubles, the Wave could not wrap up the doubles point for nearly an hour as the No. 2 and No. 3 matches were marathons. However, it was Westerberg and teammate Jorge Lievano who clinched that point with a thrilling 9-8 tiebreaker victory.
Following doubles, sophomore Dmitriy Koch dominated his No. 3 singles flight with a 6-0, 6-0 victory to give the Wave a 2-0 advantage.
Senior Victor Romero put the Green Wave on the brink with an impressive performance at No. 2 singles. In a hard-fought match, Romero finally put away Jacobs in the first set with a 9-7 tiebreaker victory, which gave him all the momentum he needed. The senior from Mexico easily won the second set 6-1, clinching the victory with a rocket-serve for ace.
"I did breathe a sigh of relief when Vic won his tiebreaker," Klein said. "That was a big point for us."
South Alabama responded with a victory at No. 6 singles from David Nylen, but after putting itself in position to force third sets at both No. 4 and No. 5 doubles, the Jaguars faltered. Tulane came from behind in both sets and when Westerberg clinched at No. 4, Lievano had forced a tiebreaker at No. 5.
"Our guys at four and five were not going anywhere," Klein said. "We are a very fit team and we were ready to play today."
Tulane has now won 24 consecutive matches at home and 11 straight matches overall. The Wave's No. 15 ITA ranking and its 21 dual-match victories are also school records.
May 11, 2003
Goldring Tennis Center
New Orleans, La.
No. 15 Tulane 4, South Alabama 1
Doubles
1. #5 Kogan/Romero (Tulane) def. #91 Heinrich Heyl (USA): 8-3
2. Koch/Vasiljevic (Tulane) vs. DiZazzo/Evan Fowler (USA): DNF, 7-7
3. Lievano/Westerberg (Tulane) def. Mazaev/Vestli (USA): 9-8 (7-2)
Singles
1. #5 Michael Kogan (Tulane) vs. #91 Heinrich Heyl (USA): DNF, USA led 6-3, 3-6, 4-3
2. #92 Victor Romero (Tulane) def. Clinton Jacobs (USA): 7-6 (9-7), 6-1
3. Dmitriy Koch (Tulane) def. Aurelio Di Zazzo (USA): 6-0, 6-0
4. Mattias Westerberg (Tulane) def. Pavel Mazaev (USA): 6-3, 6-4
5. Jorge Lievano (Tulane) vs. Jorgen Vetli (USA): DNF, Tulane led 6-2, 6-6 (5-3)
6. David Nylen (USA) def. Hannu Piiroinen (Tulane): 7-5, 6-2
Records:
Tulane (21-5)
South Alabama (20-8)
Players Mentioned
