April 30, 2011
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BIG EAST Semifinal – Video Recap
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The second-seeded University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team defeated third-seeded USF, 4-1 in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Championship Saturday at the Courtney Tennis Center in Notre Dame, Ind. Stephen Havens (Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy) clinched the match for the Irish at second singles and earned Notre Dame its third consecutive season to face Louisville in the championship match.
Casey Watt (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) and Havens earned an early lead over Sebastian Hagn and Yannick Yoshizawa at second doubles that they continued to improve upon before downing the Bulls 8-5. The newly formed tandem of freshman Greg Andrews (Richland, Mich./Gull Lake) and senior Daniel Stahl (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) produced their second win as a team and in the BIG EAST Championship as they defeated Federico Sabogal and Wael Kilani to clinch the doubles point.
At the top of the doubles lineup, sophomore Spencer Talmadge (Hillsborough, Calif./Junipero Serra) and junior Niall Fitzgerald (Wicklow, Ireland/Blackrock College) were at 4-4 as they were playing Lucas Jovita and Jamal Adderley.
The Irish moved into singles action with confidence as they had a 1-0 lead over the Bulls. Andrews handled Federico Sabogal in straight sets, 6-3, 6-0. The freshman has shown no first-year jitters in this tournament as he is 2-0 and clinched Friday’s match versus the Georgetown Hoyas.
Watt was unable to earn a win over Lucas Jovita as the junior fell 6-2, 6-0 at the No. 1 position to make the score 2-1 in favor of Notre Dame. Stahl defeated Romain Deridder 6-1, 6-3 at third singles, while Havens rounded out the score with a 7-6 (7-1) and 6-4 win over Wael Kilani at second singles to earn a convincing 4-1 victory over the Bulls.
Notre Dame faces Louisville for the third consecutive BIG EAST Championship Sunday at 9:00 a.m. at the Courtney Tennis Center in Notre Dame, Ind.
Notre Dame, 4 def. USF, 1
Singles:
No. 1 Lucas Jovita (USF) def. Casey Watt (ND), 6-2, 6-0
No. 2 Stephen Havens (ND) def. Wael Kilani (USF), 7-6, 6-4
No. 3 Daniel Stahl (ND) def. Romain Deridder (USF), 6-1, 6-3
No. 4 Greg Andrews (ND) def. Federico Sabogal (USF), 6-3, 6-0
No. 5 Samuel Keeton (ND) vs. Yannick Yoshizawa (USF), 7-6, 5-4, unfinished
No. 6 Blas Moros (ND) vs. Juan Carlos Acuna (USF), 7-6, 6-4, unfinished
Order of Finish: 4, 1, 3, 2
Doubles:
No. 1 Niall Fitzgerald/Spencer Talmadge (ND) vs. Lucas Jovita/Jamal Adderley (USF), 4-4, unfinished
No. 2 Casey Watt/Stephen Havens (ND) def. Sebastian Hagn/Yannick Yoshizawa (USF), 8-5
No. 3 Daniel Stahl/Greg Andrews (ND) def. Federico Sabogal/Wael Kilani (USF), 8-3
Order of Finish: 2, 3
–ND–