March 11, 2017
By Joanne Norell
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team battled Atlantic Coast Conference foe Louisville until the final match Saturday, but fell just short in a close 4-3 decision at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center.
How It Happened
Louisville claimed the doubles point, winning matches at Nos. 1 and 2 to clinch. On Court 3, sophomore Grayson Broadus and junior Brendon Kempin defeated George Hedley and Brandon Lancaster 6-3.
The match swung back and forth in singles. The Irish (8-5, 1-1 ACC) got on the board first as freshman Matt Gamble defeated Lancaster 6-2, 6-4 at No. 5 singles and tied the match at 1-1, but Louisville (11-3, 2-1 ACC) regained the lead with a win on Court 3.
Freshman Guillermo Cabrera once again tied the match, besting Clement Filho 6-2, 7-5 at the No. 6 position. Senior Eddy Covalschi then gave the Irish a brief lead with a 6-4, 7-5 decision over Nicolas Rouanet at No. 2, but the Cardinals tied it almost immediately when Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff defeated senior Josh Hagar 7-6(5), 6-2 at No. 1.
The final result was just as tight as the match as a whole, as Broadus battled through three sets with Hedley. After winning the first set 6-0, Broadus fell in a tiebreaker in the second. He went up 5-3 in the decisive final set, but Hedley rattled off four straight games to clinch the match at 4-3 for the Cardinals.
Up Next
The Irish will be back on their home courts next Saturday in a doubleheader scheduled with Virginia (2 p.m. ET) and Aquinas (6 p.m. ET) at the Courtney Tennis Center.
Scoreboard
Louisville 4, Notre Dame 3
March 11, 2017
Bass-Rudd Tennis Center
Louisville, Ky.
Singles
1. Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff (LOU) def. No. 33 Josh Hagar (ND) 7-6(5), 6-2
2. Eddy Covalschi (ND) def. Nicolas Rouanet (LOU) 6-4, 7-5
3. Parker Wynn (LOU) def. Alex Lebedev (ND) 6-3, 6-4
4. George Hedley (LOU) def. Grayson Broadus (ND) 0-6, 7-6(2), 7-5
5. Matt Gamble (ND) def. Brandon Lancaster (LOU) 6-2, 6-4
6. Guillermo Cabrera (ND) def. Clement Filho (LOU) 6-2, 7-5
Doubles
1. No. 65 Parker Wynn / Sean Donohue (LOU) def. No. 12 Eddy Covalschi / Josh Hagar (ND) 6-4
2. Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff / Ciro Lampasas (LOU) def. Matt Gamble / Alex Lebedev (ND) 6-2
3. Grayson Broadus / Brendon Kempin (ND) def. George Hedley / Brandon Lancaster (LOU) 6-3
— ND —
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 women’s soccer, men’s tennis, women’s tennis and fencing programs. Norell is a 2011 graduate of Purdue University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communication, and earned her master’s degree in sports industry management from Georgetown University in 2013.