May 12, 2018
By Joanne Norell
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team was dominant in its first NCAA Championship victory since 2014 Saturday, as the No. 25 Irish clinched a 4-1 victory over Western Michigan at the University of Michigan’s Varsity Tennis Center.
Notre Dame (19-13) will face the winner of Saturday’s second match between host Michigan and Cleveland State on Sunday. The first-round win marked the first NCAA win for any member of the current Irish roster.
How It Happened
With a shaken-up doubles lineup that reflected the team’s early-season pairings, the Irish entered the match with high energy and earned quick breaks on Courts 2 and 3. It was Notre Dame’s third tandem that struck first, as sophomore Matt Gamble and freshman Richard Ciamarra defeated Maik Steiner and Billy Heckman 6-3. The No. 2 duo of junior Alex Lebedev and freshman William Howells clinched the early point for Notre Dame, earning a 6-4 win over Nick Schnobel and Eric Olivarez. On Court 1, senior Brendon Kempin and freshman Tristan McCormick stood locked at a 5-5 hold with Jannik Opitz and Kennosuke Nouchi when the match was abandoned.
The Irish went on to win first sets on the top four courts, leading the way for speedy victories at 4, 2 and 1, respectively. Gamble started things off with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Lenhard Haupt on Court 4, followed quickly by Ciamarra, who defeated Opitz 6-3, 6-4 on the adjacent Court 2. Lebedev closed the door, upending Steiner 6-3, 6-3 at the top of the lineup.
Western Michigan (22-5) won on Court 6 as Olivarez defeated junior Grayson Broadus for the lone Broncos’ point. The Irish led on Courts 3 and 5 before the team match was clinched. Cabrera led Nouchi 6-2, 4-3 on Court 3, while McCormick rallied to go ahead of Matej Svjetlicic 3-6, 6-0, 2-0 at No. 5.
Coach Ryan Sachire Says
On changing up doubles pairingsââ’¬¦
“Those are combinations that we played earlier in the year that had success. Sometimes with doubles combinations there can be a shelf life. It was going back to a known quantity that had success early in the year at both two and three doubles and I thought changing it up would give some spark to the team. I feel like we’ve got eight really good doubles players who can contribute to our lineup and I think this is the right thing to do in the tournament moving forward.”
On singles playââ’¬¦
“I think we started very, very well. Even in the first sets that we lost, we got up early breaks. We knew we were prepared and we were confident coming in that we knew how we wanted to play and that clarity was really important coming into the match. We won first sets on four courts and overall play really well, so I was really happy with that.”
On Notre Dame advancing to the second round for the first time since 2014ââ’¬¦
“It’s a good first step. This group has done something this year that in the past couple of years we haven’t achieved. This is just another notch on that record. We’re excited about the opportunity tomorrow and it’s going to be another good tennis match against a good team, which we’ve had a lot this year. We’re prepared and excited to compete tomorrow.”
Up Next
The Irish will face the winner of the day’s second match between No. 15 Michigan and Cleveland State at noon ET Sunday at the Varsity Tennis Center.
Scoreboard
No. 25 Notre Dame 4, Western Michigan 1
May 12, 2018
Varsity Tennis Center
Ann Arbor, Mich.
Singles
1. No. 34 Alex Lebedev (ND) def. Maik Steiner (WMU) 6-3, 6-3
2. Richard Ciamarra (ND) def. Jannik Opitz (WMU) 6-3, 6-4
3. Guillermo Cabrera (ND) vs. Kennosuke Nouchi (WMU) 6-2, 4-3, unfinished
4. Matt Gamble (ND) def. Lenhard Haupt (WMU) 6-3, 6-2
5. Tristan McCormick (ND) vs. Matej Svjetlicic (WMU) 3-6, 6-0, 2-0, unfinished
6. Eric Olivarez (WMU) def. Grayson Broadus (ND) 6-4, 6-0
Doubles
1. No. 49 Brendon Kempin / Tristan McCormick (ND) vs. Jannik Opitz / Kennosuke Nouchi (WMU) 5-5, unfinished
2. William Howells / Alex Lebedev (ND) def. Nick Schnobel / Eric Olivarez (WMU) 6-4
3. Richard Ciamarra / Matt Gamble (ND) def. Maik Steiner / Billy Heckman (WMU) 6-3
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Joanne Norell, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since 2014 and coordinates communications efforts for the Notre Dame men’s tennis and fencing programs, in addition to assisting with football communications and overseeing production of the football Gameday Magazine. Norell is a 2011 graduate of Purdue University and earned her master’s degree from Georgetown University in 2013.