Sept. 21, 2014
OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. – University of Notre Dame men’s tennis standout Quentin Monaghan closed out his first fall tournament of the 2014-15 season in style Sunday, as he breezed past No. 6 Jared Hiltzik of Illinois, 6-1, 6-1, to highlight the final day of the Illini Invitational for the Irish.
The win gives the junior, who is ranked No. 88 in the ITA fall rankings, a signature victory as he advances throughout the fall action and into the spring season.
“Quentin’s win was over Illinois’ No. 1 player and an All-American last year,” said head coach Ryan Sachire. “It’s not only his biggest win at Notre Dame, but it’s probably the biggest win of his life. So we were obviously excited for Q.
“We’ve been talking for months about staying focused between points on how he wants to play each point and – when given the opportunity – how he wants to finish each point. To kick down a barrier like this you have to block out the situation and focus on each point.”
In addition to Monaghan, freshmen Brendon Kempin and Drew Dawson and junior Eric Schnurrenberger earned singles wins Sunday, as the Irish went 4-4 on the day.
Notre Dame went 3-1 in doubles action on the tournament’s final day. Dawson and Monaghan teamed up for an 8-2 victory over Miami’s Christian Langmo and Bernard Tefel, and Kempin and Nicolas Montaya bested Illinois’ Aleks Vukic and Toshiki Matsuya, 8-2. Elsewhere, Wyatt McCoy and Kenneth Sabacinski earned a hard-fought victory over Memphis’ Ryan Peniston and Andrew Watson, 8-6.
“Fall results are always mixed,” said Sachire. “Some guys play well and some don’t do as well as you had hoped. But all the guys that played for us this weekend have something positive to draw on, but all experienced losing as well. That creates a perfect storm as a coach. It provides areas to draw on that are positive and areas that need work.”
Notre Dame returns to action next weekend as it splits up for three separate tournaments. Locations for next weekend include the Crimson Tide Four in the Fall tournament in Tuscaloosa, Ala., the Vredevelt Invitational in Kalamazoo, Mich., and the All-American Championships in Tulsa, Okla.
Sunday Results (Olympia Fields CC, Olympia Fields, Ill.)
Doubles (3-1)
Jared Hiltzik / Tim Kopinski (ILL) d. Eddy Covalschi / Eric Schnurrenberger, 8-2
Wyatt McCoy / Kenneth Sabacinski d. Ryan Peniston / Andrew Watson (MEM), 8-6
Drew Dawson / Quentin Monaghan d. Christian Langmo / Bernard Tefel (UM), 8-2
Bredon Kempin / Nicolas Montoya d. Aleks Vukic / Toshiki Matsuya (ILL), 8-2
Singles (4-4)
No. 88 Quentin Monaghan d. No. 6 Jared Hiltzik (ILL), 6-1, 6-1
Beck Bond (NCST) d. Nicolas Montoya, 6-2, 6-4
Brendon Kempin d. Gus Benson (KY), 7-5, 6-0
Drew Dawson d. Shakeel Manji (MEM), 6-5, 6-3
Andrew Watson (MEM) d. Eddy Covalschi, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
Wilfredo Gonzalez (UM) d. Kenneth Sabacinski, 6-2, 6-0
Eric Schnurrenberger d. Toshiki Matsuya (ILL), 6-3, 6-3
Bernard Tefel (UM) d. Wyatt McCoy, 7-5, 6-4
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Lawson / Pecor Fall In Semifinals Of Orange Draw
The duo went 3-1 on the weekend at the Princeton Farnsworth Ivy Invitational
PRINCETON, N.J. – Junior Alex Lawson and senior Billy Pecor’s run in the orange draw doubles bracket came to an end in the quarterfinals Sunday as the No. 27 ranked duo fell 8-1 to St. John’s Vaidik Munshaw and Lucas Hejhal on the final day of the Princeton Farnsworth Ivy Invitational.
Lawson and Pecor finished the tournament with a 3-1 record.
Sunday Results
Doubles
No. 51 Vaidik Munshaw / Lucas Hejhal (St. John’s) d. No. 27 Alex Lawson / Billy Pecor, 8-1
–ND–