From University of Chicago Athletics
The University of Chicago men's tennis team kept their undefeated streak intact with strong play across the board to beat Trinity University (Texas) 6-3 in the first round of the ITA Division III National Team Indoor Championship on Friday.
The No. 6-ranked Maroons are now 6-0 on the season and 4-0 against nationally-ranked opposition. This marks UChicago's first-ever team victory at ITA Indoor Nationals – the Maroons previously went 0-3 in 2012. The No. 8-ranked Tigers fell to 3-4.
UChicago came in as the No. 4 seed and Trinity was the No. 5 seed out of the field of eight invited teams. The last time the two squads faced off was in 2012 at ITA Indoor Nationals, with the Tigers emerging with a 7-2 win.
The Maroons seized a 2-1 lead after doubles. The No. 1 pairing (Nicolas Chua/David Liu) and No. 2 pairing (Charlie Pei/Peter Leung) burst out of the gate to handily win their matches 8-3 and 8-2, respectively.
Once singles got underway, UChicago kept its momentum rolling. Pei and Leung made quick work of their opponents in straight sets at the No. 3 and No. 4 spots. Trinity answered back with a singles win of their own to make it 4-2. The Maroons then had three ongoing matches to clinch the deciding match. It was sophomore David Liu who delivered the closer. At No. 5 singles, Liu found himself down one set and 4-1 in the second set. However, he rattled off five-straight games to even the sets, 6-4. He then finished the match off in the third set, 6-2. Freshman Max Liu provided the final team points with a three-set win at No. 6.
"In our team meeting last night, we laid out four goals for ourselves that had nothing to do with winning or losing," said Head Coach Jay Tee. "We decided that if we focused on playing with attitude and energy, playing as one, focused on playing with maturity, and set our goal on winning the Sportsmanship Award, that the results would take care of themselves and they did. I'm proud of the way we competed to defeat the defending championships. Trinity is a very good team so this is a win we will enjoy this afternoon."
UChicago advances to Saturday's semifinal with a 1:00 PM (ET) match time.
UChicago 6, Trinity (Texas) 3
Singles
1. Paxton Deuel (TT) def. Nicolas Chua (UC) 2-6, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4
2. Adam Krull (TT) def. Sven Kranz (UC) 6-4, 6-1
3. Charlie Pei (UC) def. Wilson Lambeth (TT) 6-4, 6-1
4. Peter Leung (UC) def. Matt Tyer (TT) 6-2, 6-2
5. David Liu (UC) def. Chas Mayer (TT) 3-6, 6-4, 6-2
6. Max Liu (UC) def. Clayton Niess (TT) 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 11-9
Doubles
1. Nicolas Chua/David Liu (UC) def. Adam Krull/Matt Tyer (TT) 8-3
2. Charlie Pei/Peter Leung (UC) def. Paxton Deuel/Clayton Niess (TT) 8-2
3. Eliot Guin/Chas Mayer (TT) def. Sven Kranz/Gordon Zhang (UC) 8-3