The No. 54 Kansas men’s tennis team dropped another grueling 4-3 decision on Saturday, this time falling to No. 43 Oklahoma State in a pivotal conference and regional matchup.
The loss drops KU’s record to 13-9, 4-3 in the Big 12. OSU improves to 10-7, 4-3, as the teams will continue to jockey for regional and conference positioning heading into the Big 12 Tournament on April 26-29.
Kansas jumped out to a quick start, as it seized the doubles point with wins at the No. 1 and No. 3 positions. The team of Pete Stroer and Quentin Blakeney defeated Matt Prentice and Anthony Zafiris, 8-4, while the KU duo of Andrew Metzler and Eleazar Magallan knocked off Eru Lyndon and Jiri Jezek by a similar 8-4 count.
But OSU bounced back in singles play, taking four of six matches to seal the victory. Blakeney earned one of KU’s two wins, winning his sixth in a row and 15th in his last 16 matches as he defeated Fran Krepelka, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, snapping Krepelka’s nine-match winning streak. Blakeney is now a remarkable 31-6 on the season, including a 21-2 mark in the spring campaign.
Metzler captured KU’s other singles victory, as he defeated Zafiris, 6-4, 6-2, at the No. 6 singles position.
Despite the loss in a pivotal match, the Jayhawks still have opportunities to bounce back in a big way, with match-ups against two of the top teams in the country, Texas Christian and Tulsa, on April 21 and 22, respectively.
1) Matt Prentice (OSU) def. Eleazar Magallan (KU), 6-2, 4-6, 6-3
2) Chris Bates (OSU) def. Rodrigo Echagaray (KU), 7-6, 6-3
3) Quentin Blakeney (KU) def. Fran Krepelka (OSU), 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
4) Eru Lyndon (OSU) def. Pete Stroer (KU), 7-6, 7-6
5) Jiri Jezek (OSU) def. Alex Barragan (KU), 7-5, 6-2
6) Andy Metzler (KU) def. Anthony Zafiris (OSU), 6-4, 6-2
1) Stoer/Blakeney (KU) def. Prentice/Zafiris (OSU), 8-4
2) Krepelka/Bates (OSU) def. Echagaray/Barragan (KU), 8-3
3) Magallan/Metzler (KU) def. Lyndon/Jezek (OSU), 8-4
Norman, Okla. ? Kansas University’s men’s tennis team blitzed Oklahoma, 6-1, on Friday.
The win upped the Jayhawks’ record to to 14-8 overall and 5-2 in the Big 12 entering today’s match against Oklahoma State.
KU’s Quentin Blakeney improved his record to 30-6 with a 7-6, 6-2 win over Matt Ogle. He became the first Jayhawk to reach the 30-win plateau since Enrique Abaroa in 1996-97.
KU’s Pete Stroer won 6-0, 6-0 at No. 4 singles. Rodrigo Echagaray bounced Chris Mitchell, 6-2, 3-6, at No. 2.
Freshmen Andrew Metzler and David Stauffer were winners at Nos. 5 and 6 singles respectively.
Julio Martinez, OU, def. Eleazar Magallan, 7-6 (10), 6-3.
Rodrigo Echagaray, KU, def. Chris Mitchell, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.
Quentin Blakeney, KU, def. Matt Ogle, 7-6 (5), 6-2
Pete Stroer, KU, def. Evan Davis, 6-0, 6-0
Andrew Metzler, KU, def. Blake Mason , 6-1, 6-1
David Stauffer, KU, def. Mat Price, no score available.
Mitchell-Ogle, OU, def. Blakeney-Stroer, 8-6.
Magallan-Echagaray, KU, def. Martinez-Davis, 8-2.
Metzler-Stauffer, KU, def. Mason-Price, 8-4..
Kansas’ men’s tennis team lost the doubles point, but claimed four singles victories to win its match with Colorado, 4-3, on Saturday at Alvamar.
Rodrigo Echagaray, Quentin Blakeney, Pete Stroer and Andrew Metzler each won in singles to give KU the come-from-behind victory.
“Those guys are playing with a lot of confidence right now, and hopefully they can continue their confidence into (today’s) match,” Kansas coach Ross Nwachukwu said.
Kansas, 12-8 overall and 3-2 in the Big 12, will play its final home match today against Nebraska. Match time is 9 a.m.
KU’s men’s tennis program will be discontinued after this season for budgetary reasons.
“We’re focused only on how important that match is to our team,” Nwachukwu said. “We can’t help but realize it’s our last home match, but it’s more important for us to take care of the task at hand.”
Maceij Dilaj, CU, def. Eleazar Magallan, 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (7-3)
Rodrigo Echagaray, KU, def. Mirko Jovanovic, 6-1, 6-4
Quentin Blakeney, KU, def. Jerad Harbaugh, 6-4, 6-3
Pete Stroer, KU, def. Bryan Knepper, 6-1, 3-6, 6-4
Justin Hunter, CU, def. Alex Barragan, 6-2, 6-1
Andrew Metzler, KU, def. Jeremy Ricks, 6-3, 6-3
Hunter-Knepper, CU, def. Blakeney-Stroer, 8-6
Barragan-Echagaray, KU, def. Andy Winter-Jovanovic, 8-3
Dilaj-Harbaugh, CU, def. Magallan-Metzler, 9-8 (5)
Kansas City, Mo ? With chants of “Let’s go Rodrigo” and “Vamos” ringing through the Plaza Tennis Center on Friday, Kansas University’s Rodrigo Echagaray delivered for his teammates at the Big 12 men’s tournament.
Echagaray, a sophomore from Juarez, Mexico, rallied for a 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (8-6) victory over Oklahoma State’s Matt Prentice in the decisive No. 1 singles match. The No. 4 seed Jayhawks defeated the No. 5 Cowboys, 4-2, to reach today’s tournament semifinals against Baylor, ranked fourth nationally.
“I think I play better when I have pressure,” said Echagaray, mobbed by his teammates and coach on the court after his victory. “We knew we needed one more (team) point and everyone else was having a hard time.”
Echagaray, now 20-14, played under plenty of pressure. Down 4-2 in the final set, he won three consecutive games for a 5-4 advantage. An overhead slam at the net gave Echagaray his first lead of the set.
“The whole third set I served really well,” Echagaray said. “I served strong when I had to.”
Prentice, who defeated Echagaray in straight sets earlier this month, forced the tiebreaker with an ace.
In the tiebreaker, Echagaray took the lead at 3-2 with a backhand volley at the net and was up 4-2 following a mishit that clipped the net and dropped in front of Prentice.
“He had a lucky shot on my first match point, so I guess we’re even,” Echagaray said of the mishit.
Echagaray seemed to be in control at 6-3 before Prentice rallied with three straight points. The KU netter didn’t fold, winning the final two points before an overflow gallery.
“That was a great match for the fans,” OSU coach James Wadley said. “I wish everyone could have been around the court to see the excitement.”
Throughout the regular season, Echagaray and teammate Eleazar Magallan split time at No. 1 singles. KU coach Mark Riley had a hunch Echagaray belonged at No. 1 for the tournament.
“The reason I played Rodrigo at No. 1 today is because he’s a little stronger,” Riley said. “I thought that would be a better matchup for us.”
Earlier in the day, Echagaray and junior Ed Dus teamed to win No. 1 doubles over Prentice and Eru Lyndon, 8-5. KU’s Pete Stroer and Quentin Blakeney won No. 3 doubles, 8-3. The two doubles victories gave the Jayhawks a point heading into the singles portion.
“Winning that doubles point was huge,” Riley said. “We needed three out of six in singles and then we were up 3-0 and they had to win the last four matches. There was a lot of pressure on them. They had to be perfect and we had to get one at the end.”
Also in singles, Blakeney won at No. 3, 6-2, 6-2, and Alex Barragan won No. 6, 3-6, 6-2, 6-1.
“Coach was definitely confident,” said Blakeney, a sophomore from Charlotte, N.C. “We were really trying to concentrate on getting the doubles point. When you get the doubles point, that puts a lot of pressure on the rest of the match. We were playing hard, pretty focused and pumped. I think that was one of the best matches we played all year.”
Entering the tournament, KU had dropped three consecutive duals.
“My team has been up and down, up and down all year,” said Riley, whose victory over OSU was the 100th in his seven-year coaching career. “Coach (Ross) Nwachukwu and myself did everything we could to get them ready. They found a way to compete. Now we get rewarded by playing the No. 4 team in the country.”
KU (10-11) and Baylor will meet at 10 a.m. today. Baylor, the tourney’s top seed, has a 20-4 dual record. The Bears went 8-0 in the Big 12 regular season, including a 5-2 victory over KU.
