Sept. 20, 2008
Ann Arbor, Mich. – The men’s tennis team competed at the Wolverine Invitational for the second consecutive day, posting a 6-2 record in singles play and a 2-2 mark in doubles action. Tyler Davis (Nashville, Tenn./Father Ryan HS) led the Irish, winning both his singles and doubles matches.
The Irish lineup faced the hosts form Michigan in singles play and the Denver Pioneers in doubles play. The Invitational works on an individual point scoring system, with players earning points for both singles and doubles wins. At the first position, a player earns eight points for a win, down through the eighth position where a win is worth one point. In doubles play, four points are awarded to each member of the winning team in the number one position, down to the fourth spot, where a win is worth one point for each player. After two days of play, Davis is in second place overall with 18 points and Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley West) is in third place with 16 points.
In singles action, #25 Helgeson was defeated in straight sets (7-5, 7-6) by David Simpson at the number one position. After playing at the number three spot on the first day, sophomore Daniel Stahl (Bethesda, MD/Walt Whitman HS) notched a win from the second position on day two. He defeated Martin Zimmerman 7-6, 6-3. Classmate Stephen Havens (Cincinnati, OH/Hill Christian School) dropped a 6-3, 6-2 decision at number three singles to Benny Althaus. David Anderson (Nashville, TN/Father Ryan HS) rounded out the top four spots for the Irish, defeating Yannick Weihs 6-2, 6-1.
Davis served it up from the number five position, downing Johan Gunnarsson 6-3, 6-3. Freshman Casey Watt (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) earned a win in his first singles action at the collegiate level, beating Andrew Landwerlen 7-5, 6-1. Matt Johnson (Portage, MI/Portage Central HS) earned two points with his win over Ravjot Dhatt 6-2, 6-4. Freshman Niall Fitzgerald (Wicklow, Ireland/Blackrock College) played at the number eight position, defeating Varun Gunaseelan 6-2, 6-0.
The Irish posted a 2-2 record in doubles action. Helgeson teamed with Davis at the number one spot, winning 8-5. It marked the second straight win for the duo. Havens and Watt fell 9-8(4) in a closely contested match, while senior Santiago Montoya (Austin, Texas/St. Stephen’s) and Johnson lost another close match by the score of 9-8(5). Anderson and Stahl won (8-5) to round out Notre Dame’s day.
The Invitational concludes tomorrow, as the Irish face Miami in doubles play at 12:30 p.m. and Michigan in singles play at 1:30 p.m on Sunday as Davis and Helgeson look for key wins to propel them to the top of the standings.
Complete Day Two Results (UM Varsity Tennis Center-Ann Arbor, Michigan):
Match One: Michigan vs. Miami 1. Jason Jung (Michigan) def. David Rosenfield (Miami), 7-6(4), 7-5 2. David Simon (Miami) def, Andrew Mazlin (Michigan), 6-1, 6-2 3. Keith Crowley (Miami) def. Mike Sroczynski (Michigan), 3-6, 7-5, 6-1 4. Ignacio Taboada (Miami) def. Drew Daniel (Michigan), 6-3, 6-2 5. Peter Aarts (Michigan) def J.C. Whitner (Miami), 7-6(3), 7-5 6. Chris Madden (Michigan) def. Hector Nieto (Miami), 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 7. Matt Parks (Michigan) def. Westin Wendt (Miami) 6-2, 6-4 8. Mike DePietro (Michigan) def, Niall Fitzgerald (Notre Dame), 6-3, 4-6, 1-0 (11-9)
Match Two: Denver vs. Notre Dame 1. David Simson (Denver) def. Brett Helgeson (Notre Dame), 7-5, 7-6 2. Daniel Stahl (Notre Dame) def. Martin Zimmermann (Denver), 7-6, 6-3 3. Benny Althaus (Denver) def. Stephen Havens (Notre Dame), 6-3, 6-2 4. David Anderson (Notre Dame) def. Yannick Weihs (Denver), 6-2, 6-1 5. Tyler Davis (Notre Dame) def. Johan Gunnarsson (Denver), 6-3, 6-3 6. Casey Watts (Notre Dame) def. Andrew Landwerlen (Denver), 7-5, 6-1 7. Matt Johnson (Notre Dame) def. Ravjot Dhatt (Denver), 6-2, 6-4 8. Niall Fitzgerald (Notre Dame) def. Varun Gunaseelan (Denver), 6-2, 6-0
Doubles Michigan vs. Notre Dame 1. Brett Helgason /Tyler Davis (Notre Dame) def. Jason Jung/Mike Sroczynski (Michigan), 8-5 2. Drew Daniel/George Navas (Michigan) def. Stephen Havens/Casey Watt (Notre Dame), 9-8(4) 3. Andrew Mazlin/Chris Madden (Michigan) def. Santiago Montoya/Matt Johnson (Notre Dame), 9-8(5) 4. Daniel Stahl/David Anderson (Notre Dame) def. Peter Aarts/Mike DePietro (Michigan), 8-5 5. Matt Parks/Chris Streeter (Michigan) def. Ravjot Dhatt/Johan Gunaseelan (Denver), 8-3 Denver vs. Miami 1. David Rosenfield/Keith Crowley def. Martin Zimmerman/Andrew Landwerlen, 9-8(4) 2. David Simson/Yannick Weihs def. David Simon/Ignacio Taboada, 8-6 3. J.C. Whitner/Hector Nieto (Miami) def. Benny Althaus/Johan Gunnarsson (Denver), 9-8(4) 4. Matt Parks/Chris Streeter (Michigan) def. Ravjot Dhatt/Johan Gunaseelan (Denver), 8-3
Standings (After two days of play) Jason Jung (Michigan)-20 Tyler Davis (Notre Dame) -18 Brett Helgeson (Notre Dame)-16 Daniel Stahl (Notre Dame)-15 David Simon (Miami)-14 David Anderson (Notre Dame)-12 David Simson (Denver)-12 Mike Sroczynski (Michigan)-10 Keith Crowley (Miami)-10 Andrew Mazlin (Michigan)-9 Yannick Weihs (Denver)-8 Drew Daniel (Michigan)-8 Hector Nieto (Miami)-7 George Navas (Michigan)-6 Benny Althaus (Notre Dame)-6 Casey Watt (Notre Dame)-6 Chris Madden (Michigan) -5 Peter Aarts (Michigan)-5 Ignacio Taboada (Miami)-5 Johan Gunnarsson (Denver)-4 Matt Johnson (Notre Dame)-4 David Rosenfield (Miami)-4 J.C. Whitner (Miami)-4 Stephen Haven (Notre Dame)-3 Matt Parks (Michigan)-3 Andrew Landwerlen (Denver)-3 David Streeter (Michigan)-2 Santiago Montoya (Notre Dame)-2 Niall Fitzgerald (Notre Dame)-2 Mike DePietro (Michigan)-2
–ND–