Feb. 2, 2007
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The 11th-ranked University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team (3-1) used strong senior leadership to defeat #13 Florida State (5-1) Friday 5-2 at the Eck Center Pavilion. With this victory, the Irish improve to 3-1 on the season, heading into a pair of matches this Sunday against #8 Duke and Toledo.
The Irish got off to a strong start, winning two out of three doubles matches to earn the doubles point. The 11th-ranked duo of Senior Ryan Keckley (South Bend, IN) and Junior Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, NE) jumped out to a quick start, only allowing one point en route to their 8-1 victory over Ytai Abougzir and Jean-Yves Aubone. Keckley and Parbhu improve their record 17-2 overall and 3-1 in dual action.
Senior Barry King (Dublin, Ireland) and Sophomore Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, KS) secured the doubles point for Notre Dame with an 8-6 win at #2 doubles against Jonathas Sucupira and Bradley Mixson. King and Helgeson upped their record 11-4 and 3-1.
At #3 doubles, Senior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, NY) and Junior Andrew Roth (Houston, TX) fell 9-8 to the Seminoles’ Maciek Sykut and Andrew Bailey, dropping to 6-3 overall and 2-2 on the season.
“I think we played well,” head coach Bob Bayliss said. “Getting the doubles point is important. Number one doubles was overpowering today, and that really helped us gain momentum.”
In singles, Notre Dame failed to drop a set in their four straight-set victories. The first singles point came as a result of Helgeson’s 6-3, 6-3 victory against Sucupira at #4 singles. After a handily defeating his opponent in the first set, Helgeson started off strong in the second set leading 5-0. Helgeson allowed Sucupira three games before prevailing 6-3 to improve his record to 11-4 on the season.
Following Helgeson was #3 singles Keckley with another victory for the Irish. After a slow start in the first set, Keckley was able to dominate his opponent, #76 Sykut, 6-4, 6-2. Keckley is now 12-2 for the season.
At #1 singles, #14 Bass avenged last year’s loss against Abougzir with a win this year, 6-2, 6-4, clinching the match for the Irish. The senior overcame a tough loss earlier in the evening with his doubles partner, Roth, after losing in a tiebreaker. With this victory, Bass’ singles record jumps to 14-7 for the season.
As the last win of the night for the Irish, King defeated Mixson in a hard fought battle, 6-4, 6-3. King, playing at #5 singles, improves his record to 14-5 for the season.
With the Irish up 5-0 for the match, Roth and #30 Parbhu fell against Chris Cloer and Aubone, respectively. Roth served for the first set prior to being broken and dropping the set 7-6. He then lead 3-2 in the second set before falling 5-7. Roth’s record now stands at 10-7 on the season. After two nail-biting sets, Parbhu failed to come out on top against Aubone. Parbhu fell 5-7, 5-7 in both sets. His record is now 12-8 for the season.
The Irish return to action Sunday in a double header against #8 Duke and Toledo at the Eck Center Pavilion. The first serve is scheduled for 12pm and 6pm, respectively.
#11 NOTRE DAME 5, #13 FLORIDA STATE 2
Singles
1. #14 Stephen Bass (ND) def. Ytai Abougzir (FSU), 6-2, 6-4
2. Jean-Yves Aubone (FSU) def. #30 Sheeva Parbhu (ND), 7-5, 7-5
3. Ryan Keckley (ND) def. #76 Maciek Sykut (FSU), 6-4, 6-2
4. Brent Helgeson (ND) def. Jonathas Sucupira (FSU), 6-3, 6-3
5. Barry King (ND) def. Bradley Mixson (FSU), 6-4, 6-3
6. Chris Cloer (FSU) def. Andrew Roth (ND), 7-6, 7-5
Doubles
1. #11 Parbhu/Keckley (ND) def. Abougzir/Aubone (FSU), 8-1
2. King/Helgeson (ND) def. Sucupira/Mixson (FSU), 8-6
3. Sykut/Andrew Bailey (FSU) def. Bass/Roth (ND), 9-8