Men's Tennis | 05/12/2017

STANFORD, Calif.—The Idaho men's tennis team fought all the way to the wire in Friday's first round match at the NCAA Tournament. No. 16 Stanford withstood every shot the Vandals threw at them, taking the match 4-0 at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium.

"We knew this was going to be a tough match," head coach Abid Akbar explained. "Stanford has been very good for a long time. I was very proud of how the guys did not let that affect them. They came out and played tough like I knew they could. They pushed Stanford on every court, ending strong."

A confident Vandal team came out and stunned Stanford and the Cardinal fans in doubles. Idaho shrugged off the underdog label and came out looking to steal the point. Felipe Fonseca and Guilherme Scarpelli got down 2-0 early in their match on No. 3, but came back with the next two games to tie it at 2. The pair was again tied at 4-4, before David Wilczynski and Brandon Sutter closed out the court 6-4.

Lucas Coutinho and partner Esteban Santibanez won two of the first three games at No. 2, gaining an early 2-1 lead. Stanford's Michael Genender and Sameer Kumar fought back, getting even at 4. The Vandal pair bounced back to regain the lead at 5-4, but Stanford ripped off the next three games to clinch the doubles point for the Cardinal, 7-5.

Idaho's No. 1 pair of Mark Kovacs and Carlos Longhi Neto was leading 5-4 over the No. 54 ranked doubles pair when play was abandoned.

"Doubles was exciting for us," Akbar noted. "We were able to hang in there and make them [Stanford] push a little. It was important to come out strong early and not let them get too comfortable. It would have been nice to steal the point, but I cannot be prouder."

Stanford carried the momentum into singles play, taking the first three matches to advance to the second round. No. 11 Tom Fawcett gave the Cardinal a 2-0 lead. He went 6-2 over Kovacs in the first set. Fawcett was up 3-0 in the second set when Kovacs won three games in-a-row to tie the set at 3 apiece. Fawcett, one of the top singles players in the country, shutout Idaho's No.1 the rest of the way taking the second set 6-3.

Kumar and Fonseca squared off in a back-and-forth match at No. 2. Fonseca overcame a 4-1 hole in the first set to tie the opener at 4. Kumar outlasted Fonseca early, scoring the 6-4 win. Both sides went point-for-point in the second set, forcing a tiebreaker at 6-6. Fonseca could not cool down Kumar, falling 7-6(3) in the set, giving Stanford the 3-0 lead.

Moments after Stanford's win at No. 2 they would clinch at No. 5. Sutter took the first set over Coutinho, 6-3. Much like court No. 2 the two would swap points, forcing a tiebreak in the second. Play was tight in the extra frame. Stanford held a 6-5 lead when it looked like Coutniho had evened up the point. The sophomore was overruled on a line call and the point was awarded to Stanford, closing the tiebreak 7-6(5).

"The team deserves all the credit for this season," Akbar added. "They showed a lot of heart and fight. I cannot wait to have them all back next year."

Two Vandals were able to score first-set wins over their opponents. Longhi Neto put together a 6-4 win in his opener at No. 3. Scarpelli was impressive in his first set, going 6-2 at No. 6. Both matches were left abandoned in a third set.    

Idaho finishes the season with a 16-8 record. Stanford moves on in the tournament and will play No. 17 Michigan on Saturday.
 
SINGLES
1) No. 11 Tom Fawcett (STAN) d. Mark Kovacs (IDAHO) 6-2, 6-3
2) Sameer Kumar (STAN) d. Felipe Fonseca (IDAHO) 6-4, 7-6 (3)
3) David Wilczynski (STAN) led Carlos Longhi Neto (IDAHO) 4-6, 6-1, 2-1, susp.
4) Michael Genender (STAN) led Esteban Santibanez (IDAHO) 6-3, 5-5, susp.
5) Brandon Sutter (STAN) d. Lucas Coutinho (IDAHO) 6-3, 7-6 (5)
6) William Genesen (STAN) led Guilherme Scarpelli (IDAHO) 2-6, 6-1, 4-2, susp.
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 5
DOUBLES
1) Kovacs/Longhi Neto (IDAHO) led No. 54 Fawcett/Yale Goldberg (STAN) 5-4, susp. 
2) Genender/Kumar (STAN) d. Coutinho/Santibanez (IDAHO) 7-5
3) Sutter/Wilczynski (STAN) d. Fonseca/Scarpelli (IDAHO) 6-4
Order of Finish: 3, 2