Sept. 19, 2002
2002 Tom Fallon Invitational – Day 1 Results/Day 2 Schedule in PDF Format
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NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team won seven of 11 matches against the College of William & Mary on the opening day of competition at the 16th annual Tom Fallon Invitational Thursday afternoon at the Eck Tennis Pavilion. The Irish claimed six of eight singles matches, dropping only a pair of decisions in third-set match tiebreakers, and added a doubles victory late in the day.
Junior captains Luis Haddock (Caguas, P.R./Notre Dame HS) and Matthew Scott (Oakton, Va./International School of Paris) set the pace for Notre Dame, registering straight-set wins in singles play. Haddock used a late service break in the second set to close out a 6-4, 7-5 win over William & Mary’s Sean Kelleher. Meanwhile, Scott, ranked 85th in the nation, breezed to a 6-3, 6-3 win over the Tribe’s Jeffrey Kader.
Haddock and Scott then teamed up to post a convincing 8-2 doubles victory over the William & Mary tandem of Kader and Zach Malmgren. Haddock now owns a combined 8-1 record this fall, while Scott improves to 7-2 in singles and doubles play this season. The Haddock-Scott pairing also seems to be Notre Dame’s strongest doubles team to this point in the fall, as the duo has won all three of its matches by an average score of 8-4.
The Irish freshmen also continue to impress during the early part of the fall schedule. Patrick Buchanan (Fullerton, Calif./Servite HS) remained unbeaten this season, moving to 6-0 overall and 5-0 in singles play with a come-from-behind 1-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-2) win over William & Mary’s Alex Fish. Buchanan dropped the first set in just over 15 minutes, and trailed 1-2 in the second frame before mounting his comeback. At the same time, classmate Eric Langenkamp (Scarsdale, N.Y./Scarsdale HS) avenged an earlier loss this fall to the Tribe’s Joe Brooks, rolling to a 6-1, 6-2 victory. Langenkamp now is 5-1 this season, including a 4-1 singles mark.
Junior Nicolas Lopez-Acevedo (Guaynabo, P.R./Colegio Marista) picked up his third win in four singles outings this fall, outlasting Stephen Ward of William & Mary, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 1-0 (10-8). Sophomore Peter Graham (Luxembourg/International School of Luxembourg) added his first career victory with a 9-7 pro-set win over the Tribe’s Kal Patrick.
The Tom Fallon Invitational, known as the Irish Invitational until the name was changed in 1988, honors Notre Dame coaching legend Tom Fallon, who coached the Irish for 31 years from 1957-87. Fallon, a member of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame, amassed a career record of 511-200 (.719) and helped Notre Dame to a share of the 1959 national championship.
The tournament was changed from a “flight” format to a “hidden dual” format in 2000. Teams play simulated matches against each other, but there are no team scores recorded. Each scheduled “match” will consist of either eight singles matches or four doubles matches. Singles matches consist of two sets and a match tiebreaker (first to 10 points) instead of a third set. Doubles matches are one eight-game pro set. All individual results are counted for ranking purposes.
Due to inclement weather in the South Bend area, Friday’s schedule for the Tom Fallon Invitational has been amended, with all matches to be played indoors and feature doubles play only. Notre Dame will face Maryland at 11 a.m. (EST) Friday, followed by a match with Purdue at 2 p.m. (EST), with both tilts slated for the Eck Tennis Pavilion. The Purdue contest will be a rematch of last year’s NCAA second round affair, won by the Irish, 4-0.
— ND —
NOTE: A complete listing of the results from the first day of the Fallon Invitational, along with a full rundown of Friday’s schedule, are available in PDF format via the link at the top of this release.