April 22, 2001
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — The 12th-ranked Notre Dame men’s tennis team lost 4-2 to 14th-ranked Miami in the BIG EAST championship match on Sunday. The Hurricanes, hosts of the last eight BIG EAST championships, won the doubles point and won three singles matches to beat the Irish in the final for the second consecutive year. Notre Dame falls to 16-6 on the season and now awaits an at-large bid into its 11th consecutive NCAA championship.
Miami used wins at No. 2 and 3 doubles to take the doubles point from Notre Dame. Irish juniors and 21st-ranked Javier Taborga and Aaron Talarico won 8-5 at No. 1 doubles over 44th-ranked Peter Hoffman and Tomas Smid.
Irish senior Matt Daly tied the match at 1-1 with his 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 6 singles over Andrew Golub. Miami’s Jose Lieberman put the Hurricanes ahead 2-1 with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over sophomore Brian Farrell at No. 5 singles. Miami’s 54th-ranked Michael Lang won the final eight games of the match in his 7-5, 6-0 win over 91st-ranked junior Casey Smith at No. 1 singles for a 3-1 Miami led. Talarico kept Notre Dame alive by beating Hoffman 6-3, 6-3 at No. 4 singles, before the Hurricanes claimed the title as Smid rallied to beat Taborga 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 at No. 2 singles in the deciding match.
The Hurricanes also beat the Irish 4-3 earlier in the season in match played at Miami. Notre Dame and Miami have met in every BIG EAST championship final since the Irish joined the conference in 1996. The Irish have won titles in 1996 and 1999, while the Hurricanes have defeated Notre Dame in 1997, 1998, 2000 and 2001.
#14 MIAMI 4, #12 NOTRE DAME 2
Singles
No. 1: #54 Michael Lang (UM) def. #91 Casey Smith (ND) 7-5, 6-0
No. 2: Tomas Smid (UM) def. Javier Taborga (ND) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
No. 3: Luis Haddock-Morales (ND) vs. Johan Lindqvist (UM) 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (7-4), 2-3, abandoned
No. 4: Aaron Talarico (ND) def. Peter Hoffman (UM) 6-3, 6-3
No. 5: Jose Lieberman (UM) def. Brian Farrell (ND) 6-3, 6-3
No. 6: Matt Daly (ND) def. Andrew Golub (UM) 6-1, 6-4
Doubles
No. 1: #21 Taborga/Talarico (ND) def. #44 Hoffman/Smid (UM) 8-5
No. 2: Lang/Lieberman (UM) def. James Malhame/Smith (ND) 8-5
No. 3: Golub/Lindqvist (UM) def. Daly/Haddock-Morales (ND) 9-7