From University of Chicago Athletics

University of Chicago freshman men's tennis player Nicolas Chua won the singles title at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Central Region Championships on Monday. The victory gives him an automatic berth into the USTA/ITA National Small College Championships later this fall.

The No. 19-seed Chua faced off in the final against No. 17-seed Tyler Kratky from Washington University-St. Louis. Chua won the first set 6-3, and Kratky took a 5-2 lead in the second set. But Chua rose to the occasion and reeled off five-straight games to win the match 7-5.

The win gave UChicago its second ITA Regional title in as many days. On Sunday, senior Deepak Sabada and freshman David Liu captured the doubles title.

"Nick had a great tournament and he capped it off with a great final," said Head Coach Jay Tee. "He didn't always play at his best this week, but what matters is that he fought hard to get the victories each time, which is something we talk about every day. Overall, the team took a big step forward. Everyone found ways to win matches this weekend even when they were struggling. That's the sign of becoming a good team. We are looking forward to practice for the next couple weeks before heading down to ITA Nationals to see what we can do."