Feb. 25, 2007
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The No. 9 Notre Dame men’s tennis team made quick work of No. 45 Northwestern, 7-0, on Sunday afternoon inside the Eck Tennis Pavilion. The Irish improve to 10-2 on the season, while the Wildcats drop to 5-7.
Notre Dame captured the all-important doubles point after sweeping each of the three matches. Senior Stephen Bass (Bronxville, NY) and junior Andrew Roth (Houston, TX) opened doubles action with an 8-1 rout of Christian Tempke and Juan Gomez at No. 3. Bass and Roth improve to 9-4 overall and 6-3 in dual matches.
The Irish sealed the doubles with their victory at No. 1. The ninth-ranked tandem of senior Ryan Keckley (South Bend, IN) and junior Sheeva Parbhu (Omaha, NE) coasted past Willy Lock and Matt Christian, 8-3. Keckley and Parbhu became the first Notre Dame doubles team to reach the 20-win plateau (20-7). They also evened their dual match record at 6-6.
With the doubles point already decided, senior Barry King (Dublin, Ireland) and sophomore Brett Helgeson (Overland Park, KS) survived and back-and-forth match with Alex Sanborn and Mark Dwyer at No. 3. King and Helgeson pulled out an 8-7 (1) victory. They improve to 16-6 overall and 8-3 in dual action.
The Irish left little doubt in singles action. Notre Dame captured each of the six singles matches, including five in straight sets. In their last two outings (victories over Michigan and Northwestern), the Irish have captured 11 of their 12 singles matches.
King was the first Notre Dame player to come away with victory. The senior cruised past Gomez at No. 5 in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2. King, who extended his winning streak to a team-high six matches, improves to 20-6 overall and 9-2 in dual matches. He also moved into a tie with Andrew Laflin and Javier Taborga for 18th place on the all-time Notre Dame singles’ victories list (77).
Helgeson made the Notre Dame lead 3-0 with an equally quick victory over Matt Christian at No. 3. Helgeson came away with 6-1, 6-3, straight-set win. He now stands 17-5 overall and 9-2 in dual action.
Parbhu, playing in the No. 1 spot for the first time since Feb. 4 against Toledo, clinched the victory for the Irish. Parbhu knocked off Willy Lock, 6-1, 6-4. He improves to 18-9 overall and 8-3 in dual matches. Parbhu moved into a tie with Brian Patterson and Matthew Scott for 14th place on the all-time Notre Dame singles’ victories list (83).
Notre Dame locked up the sweep with victories from Roth at No. 6, Bass at No. 2 and Keckley at No. 4. Roth upended Sanborn, 6-3, 7-5. He improves to 14-9 overall and 6-4 in dual matches. Bass also won in straight sets, 6-2, 7-6 (4), and improves to 21-8 overall and 10-2 in dual matches. He is now 94-43 over his outstanding Irish career. Keckley closed the scoring with his 7-6 (8), 3-6, 1-0 (10-7) victory over Mark Dwyer. He improves to 16-3 overall (highest winning percentage of any Irish player) and 9-1 in dual matches.
With the victory, its fourth straight over Northwestern, Notre Dame improves its record to 39-36-1 all-time against the Wildcats.
The Irish return to action on Monday, March 5 with a match against No. 15 Washington. First-serve with the Huskies is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. inside the Eck Tennis Pavilion. Notre Dame trails the all-time series against Washington, 2-0.
#9 NOTRE DAME 7, #45 NORTHWESTERN 0
Singles
*1. #27 Sheeva Parbhu (ND) def. Willy Lock (NW), 6-1, 6-4
2. #11 Stephen Bass (ND) def. Christian Tempke (NW), 6-2, 7-6 (4)
3. #94 Brett Helgeson (ND) def. Matt Christian (NW), 6-1, 6-3
4. Ryan Keckley (ND) def. Mark Dwyer (NW), 7-6 (8), 3-6, 1-0 (10-7)
5. Barry King (ND) def. Juan Gomez (NW), 6-3, 6-2
6. Andrew Roth (ND) def. Alex Sanborn (NW), 6-3, 7-5
Order of finish: 5,3,1,6,2,4
* clinching point
Doubles
*1. #9 Keckley/Parbhu (ND) def. Lock/Christian (NW), 8-3
2. King/Helgeson (ND) vs. Sanborn/Mark Dwyer (NW), 8-7 (1)
3. Bass/Roth (ND) def. Tempke/Gomez (NW), 8-1
Order of finish: 3,1,2
* clinching point
— ND —