Friday, April 27
Cayce, S.C.
3:30 PM
Creighton University
1
vs
4
Marquette
Photo by: Dave Weaver
Men's Tennis Takes Early Edge Before Falling To Marquette, 4-1, At BIG EAST Championships
4/27/2018 6:10:00 PM | Men's Tennis
Bluejays took the doubles point before the Golden Eagles won four singles matches in straight-sets
CAYCE, S.C. -- The sixth-seeded Creighton men's tennis team gained an early 1-0 lead before falling to third-seeded Marquette, 4-1, on Friday afternoon during the BIG EAST Championship Quarterfinals at the Cayce Tennis and Fitness Center.
The Bluejays ended the spring season at 10-10.
Creighton won two out of three doubles matches to take the first point. Brooks Kendall and Armando Gandini secured the Bluejays' first win of the game with a 6-0 victory at the No. 3 position. Marquette claimed the top doubles match, 6-2, before Creighton clinched first point of the afternoon with a 6-4 win at No. 2 doubles by Daniel Lopez-Rey and Mac Mease.
The Golden Eagles did not let their performance in doubles action interfere with their ability to sweep the Bluejays during singles play. Marquette won the No. 1, 3, 5 and 6 singles matches in straight-sets to seal the overall match.
Despite being swept, Creighton competed during each singles match. During the top singles match, Kendall fell 6-3, 6-2. Lopez-Rey (No. 5) and Jose Oscar Diaz (No. 6) each won a total of seven games before each lost 6-4, 6-3. Gandini forced an extra game during both sets at No. 3, but fell 7-5 in each frame as Marquette sealed the overall match.
Freshman Stratton Brown forced a tiebreaker during the first set of his No. 2 singles match before falling 7-6 (8-6), and trailed only 3-2 during the second set when the match ended. Senior Alex Koca earned a win in the first set of the No. 4 match, 6-4, fell 6-1 in the second and trailed 2-1 before Marquette clinched the victory.
"Our guys came out fired up and won the doubles point in a match where that point could have ended up being the difference," head coach Tom Lilly said. "Marquette was able to control a few of the singles matches and just outplayed us after the doubles action. We are disappointed to not be moving on but we had a good effort today; it just wasn't enough."
Friday marked the final match of their respective Creighton career's for Michael Koch, Marko Vukalovic, Kendall and Koca.
Koca ended his career with 111 career victories, which ranks eighth in program. He claimed 59 doubles wins, tied for the fifth-best mark in Bluejay history.
Kendall ended his career with 82 wins during three seasons. Kendall shared the team-lead for singles victories in the spring season with 11 (11-7). Lopez-Rey (11-5) and freshman Jose Oscar Diaz (11-6) also finished the spring with 11 wins.
Gandini paced the squad with 14 doubles wins, including 13 with Kendall.
Marquette Men's Tennis 4, Creighton Men's Tennis 1
Apr 27, 2018 at Cayce, Tennis (Cayce Tennis and Fitness Center)
The Bluejays ended the spring season at 10-10.
Creighton won two out of three doubles matches to take the first point. Brooks Kendall and Armando Gandini secured the Bluejays' first win of the game with a 6-0 victory at the No. 3 position. Marquette claimed the top doubles match, 6-2, before Creighton clinched first point of the afternoon with a 6-4 win at No. 2 doubles by Daniel Lopez-Rey and Mac Mease.
The Golden Eagles did not let their performance in doubles action interfere with their ability to sweep the Bluejays during singles play. Marquette won the No. 1, 3, 5 and 6 singles matches in straight-sets to seal the overall match.
Despite being swept, Creighton competed during each singles match. During the top singles match, Kendall fell 6-3, 6-2. Lopez-Rey (No. 5) and Jose Oscar Diaz (No. 6) each won a total of seven games before each lost 6-4, 6-3. Gandini forced an extra game during both sets at No. 3, but fell 7-5 in each frame as Marquette sealed the overall match.
Freshman Stratton Brown forced a tiebreaker during the first set of his No. 2 singles match before falling 7-6 (8-6), and trailed only 3-2 during the second set when the match ended. Senior Alex Koca earned a win in the first set of the No. 4 match, 6-4, fell 6-1 in the second and trailed 2-1 before Marquette clinched the victory.
"Our guys came out fired up and won the doubles point in a match where that point could have ended up being the difference," head coach Tom Lilly said. "Marquette was able to control a few of the singles matches and just outplayed us after the doubles action. We are disappointed to not be moving on but we had a good effort today; it just wasn't enough."
Friday marked the final match of their respective Creighton career's for Michael Koch, Marko Vukalovic, Kendall and Koca.
Koca ended his career with 111 career victories, which ranks eighth in program. He claimed 59 doubles wins, tied for the fifth-best mark in Bluejay history.
Kendall ended his career with 82 wins during three seasons. Kendall shared the team-lead for singles victories in the spring season with 11 (11-7). Lopez-Rey (11-5) and freshman Jose Oscar Diaz (11-6) also finished the spring with 11 wins.
Gandini paced the squad with 14 doubles wins, including 13 with Kendall.
Marquette Men's Tennis 4, Creighton Men's Tennis 1
Apr 27, 2018 at Cayce, Tennis (Cayce Tennis and Fitness Center)
| Singles competition |
| 1. Alvaro Verdu (MU) def. Brooks Kendall (CU) 6-3, 6-2 |
| 2. Luke Smrek (MU) vs. Stratton Brown (CU) 7-6 (8-6), 3-2, unfinished |
| 3. Luis Heredia Gomez (MU) def. Armando Gandini (CU) 7-5, 7-5 |
| 4. Greg Anderson (MU) vs. Alex Koca (CU) 4-6, 6-1, 2-1, unfinished |
| 5. Brett Meyers (MU) def. Daniel Lopez-Rey (CU) 6-4, 6-3 |
| 6. Brandon Shanklin (MU) def. Jose Oscar Diaz (CU) 6-4, 6-3 |
| Doubles competition |
| 1. Alvaro Verdu/Brett Meyers (MU) def. Stratton Brown/Alex Koca (CU) 6-2 |
| 2. Daniel Lopez-Rey/Mac Mease (CU) def. Greg Anderson/Luis Heredia Gomez (MU) 6-4 |
| 3. Armando Gandini/Brooks Kendall (CU) def. Luke Smrek/Scott Christian (MU) 6-0 |
| Match Notes |
| Creighton Men's Tennis 10-10 |
| Marquette Men's Tennis 15-6 |
| Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (1,5,6,3) |
| Match began at 4:30 p.m., due to wet courts. |
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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/ Men's Tennis
PLAYER
/ Men's Tennis
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/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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