Men’s Tennis Blanks Middle Tennessee in NCAA First Round

Saturday, May 8

Oxford, Miss.

12 PM

Tulane University

Middle Tennessee

Men’s Tennis Blanks Middle Tennessee in NCAA First Round

May 8, 2021 | Men's Tennis

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OXFORD, Miss. – The Tulane University men's tennis team collected a 4-0 win over Middle Tennessee in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament on Saturday afternoon at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center on the campus of the University of Mississippi.

The Green Wave advance to Sunday's round of 32 where they will face host and No. 15 overall seed Ole Miss at 1 p.m. It will be the Wave's third trip to the second round in their last five NCAA Tournament appearances.

"It was all about what we were going to bring to the court with our attitude and our fight today," head coach and director of tennis Mark Booras said. "We had a little bit of a chip on our shoulder from a couple weeks ago when we played the same type of team on paper as we are and knew it was going to go one way or the other. It was just depending on who had the most fight and who had the most hunger. I'm proud of the way the guys were resilient and fought their hardest. We were very disciplined emotionally and mentally today."

Tulane (15-7) found itself in an intense battle for the coveted doubles point, as Middle Tennessee (17-8) seized early momentum with a 6-1 victory on court two. The Green Wave used an early break on court three for a 3-1 lead, but the Blue Raiders pulled even at 3-3 and 4-4. Luis Erlenbusch and Fynn Kuenkler took control of the lines however to win the final two games for a 6-4 victory over Andreas Kramer and Francisco Rocha.

With all attention on court one, the 21st-ranked duo of Hamish Stewart and Ewan Moore were locked in a seesaw battle for control against 77th-ranked Pavel Motl and Stijn Slump. Trailing, 3-2, Tulane's duo held serve to tie before winning a crucial deuce point to break and take the lead, 4-3. That proved to be exactly what the Wave needed as they went on to win the next two games as well as they won, 6-3, to clinch the doubles point and give Tulane a 1-0 lead heading into singles.

🎥: Coach Booras breaks down today's NCAA Tournament victory

🌊🎾 pic.twitter.com/HvXEqF7kCq
— Tulane Men's Tennis (@GreenWaveMTenn) May 8, 2021

The Green Wave kept the pressure on the Blue Raiders early in singles, capturing four first sets. Erlenbusch was quick to extend the lead to 2-0 in the overall match by closing out court three in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, over Tom Moonen. That lead increased to 3-0 a short while later when the 34th-ranked Stewart battled back from an early deficit in the second set to outlast No. 55 Francisco Rocha, 6-4, 7-5, on court one.

The win marks Stewart's sixth over a top-100 opponent during the 2021 season.

"Today we got that quick point from Luis, and Hamish was able to come back from being down in each set," Booras said. "Their senior leadership showed today with how they responded to what the other team was bringing. That's the thing about senior leadership. It's not about how hard they can hit the ball, it's about how they respond to the situation under pressure, and today they responded very well."

Middle Tennessee gathered a large sum of momentum from that point, forcing third sets on courts two and four, respectively, but Kuenkler and Rafael de Alba bounced back from lost first sets on courts five and six to force a third on their respective courts as well.

That's when freshman Billy Suarez took control in the third set on court four after splitting the first two frames, 6-2 and 4-6. Suarez earned two breaks in the first three games to build a 3-0 lead, but Middle Tennessee's Chris Edge countered with the same effort to knot the score, 3-3. Suarez settled in however to win the final three games and clinch the victory for Tulane.

"I was definitely very excited to play in my first NCAA Tournament," Suarez said. "Overall I think it was a solid match for me, and I'm proud of my team for getting the job done on their courts as well. I'm excited to play tomorrow."

#22 Tulane 4, #42 Middle Tennessee 0
Singles competition
1. #35 Hamish Stewart (TLN) def. #55 Francisco Rocha (MTSU) 6-4, 7-5
2. Ewan Moore (TLN) vs. Stijn Slump (MTSU) 7-5, 4-6, 3-0, unfinished
3. Luis Erlenbusch (TLN) def. Tom Moonen (MTSU) 6-2, 6-3
4. Billy Suarez (TLN) def. Chris Edge (MTSU) 6-2, 4-6, 6-3
5. Rafael de Alba (TLN) vs. Pavel Motl (MTSU) 3-6, 6-2, 3-4, unfinished
6. Fynn Kuenkler (TLN) vs. Max Rauch (MTSU) 5-7, 6-0, 2-4, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. #21 Hamish Stewart/Ewan Moore (TLN) def. #77 Pavel Motl/Stijn Slump (MTSU) 6-3
2. Tom Moonen/Chris Edge (MTSU) def. Akos Kotorman/Billy Suarez (TLN) 6-1
3. Luis Erlenbusch/Fynn Kuenkler (TLN) def. Andreas Kramer/Francisco Rocha (MTSU) 6-4

Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (3,1,4)

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