Courtesy: Jim Daves/UVa Media Relations Somdev Devvarman
CHARLOTTESVILLE – Top-seeded Virginia advanced to the round of 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the fifth consecutive year, defeating Penn State 4-0 Sunday in the second round match of the Charlottesville Regional. Neither the Nittany Lions nor the rain, which caused the match to be finished indoors, could stop the Cavaliers from posting their 30th victory of the season, tying the school record.
“I was pleased with how we played,” said head coach Brian Boland. “We came in and were focused and ready to go. We were a little sharper than yesterday and we need to be. Penn State is a very good team and they fought hard.”
The Cavaliers (30-0) took control of the match early with a strong doubles performance. Sanam Singh (Chandigarh, India) and Houston Barrick (Brentwood, Tenn.) posted an 8-2 win over Adam Slagter and Guillaume St. Maurice at No. 3 singles. Somdev Devvarman (Chennai, India) and Treat Huey (Alexandria, Va.) clinched the opening point with an 8-2 win at No. 1 singles over Michael James and Brendan Lynch.
“I thought that was as good as we have played all year in doubles,” said Boland. “That gave us a lot of confidence and a lot of momentum that carried over into singles.”
The Cavalier advantage was extended to 2-0 as Michael Shabaz (Fairfax, Va.) scored a 6-2, 6-1 win over Eddie Bourchier at the No. 5 position. It was the only singles match to be completed before the rain came about two hours into the match. After a short wait, both coaches agreed to move the conclusion of the match indoors.
At the Boyd Tinsley Courts at the Boar’s Head Sports Club, Virginia made the score 3-0 as Huey completed a 6-4, 6-4 win over Slagter at the No. 2 position. Ted Angelinos (Athens, Greece) punched the Cavaliers’ ticket to Tulsa with his 6-3, 6-3 win over St. Maurice at No. 6 singles.
“We are getting close to playing to where I think this team can play,” said Boland. “I am confident that we will be playing at our best in Tulsa. Our doubles today was as good as it has been, Dom (Inglot) is healthy, and Shabaz looks good right now. I couldn’t feel better. This is the best that I have ever felt heading to the round of 16 of the NCAA Tournament.”
Penn State concludes the year with a 16-12 record. In the first round, the Nittany Lions upset VCU to post the first NCAA Tournament win in school history since the tournament went to a 64-team field.
“I thought we didn’t play bad today, they just went out and showed why they are the best team in the country,” said Penn State head coach Todd Doebler. “We came out and played well in doubles and they put on a clinic for us. We felt good about getting the win over VCU and felt fortunate to play the No. 1 team in the country in the second round.”
The win was Virginia’s 30th of the season, tying the school record set last year when the Cavaliers went 30-4 while reaching the NCAA Semifinals.
Virginia will travel this week to Tulsa for the NCAA Championships, held at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center on the campus of the University of Tulsa. The Cavaliers will meet No. 16 seed Michigan on Friday in the round of 16. Match time is noon (CT).
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Courtesy: Jim Daves/UVa Media Relations