
Photo by: Ball State University Creative Services
Men’s Tennis Splits Doubleheader At Notre Dame Wednesday
January 20, 2021 | Men's Tennis
The Cardinals defeated the Irish In the second match, 4-3
NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The Ball State men's tennis team (1-1) opened spring action with a double header Wednesday against Notre Dame (3-1) at the Eck Tennis Pavilion. Ball State dropped the first match against Notre Dame by a score of 6-1 but then rallied back in the evening competition for a 4-3 victory over the Irish.
"This was a great win for our team and program," Ball State head men's tennis coach Bill Richards said. "It was a very big upset and I am extremely proud of our guys to have the belief that we could do this. Sajin's win as the last match on was nothing but clutch, very big for a freshman."
Ball State closed the day on a high note claiming the doubles point over Notre Dame in the evening competition. The BSU twosome of Eli Herran and Bryce Bonin were the first duo off the court, earning a 6-1 decision over ND's Connor Fu and Braeden Ho. The Irish then evened doubles action by taking the No. 2 spot from Ball State.
The doubles point would come down to the No. 1 duo of Chris Adams and Vince Orlando who clinched the early 1-0 lead over the Irish after defeating Richard Ciamarra and Matt Gamble, 6-4.
Notre Dame would then earn the first two singles points over the Cardinals to move ahead of BSU, 2-1, after taking positions one and six from Ball State.
Ball State did not give up though and would quickly fight back to even the score at 2-2, starting with Herran's 6-4, 6-1 victory over Notre Dame's No. 5 player Jean-Marc Malkowski. Simmons followed suit to put the Cardinals back in control of the match with his 6-2, 6-3 defeat over Matthew Haplin at the No. 4 slot.
After that, Notre Dame's Connor Fu took No. 2 singles from Ball State to even the score, 3-3.
Ball State needed one more point to claim the win over Notre Dame. The match would come down to true freshman Sajin Smith on court three. Smith, in his first collegiate match, played with confidence to take down Notre Dame's Matt Gamble in a three-set thriller 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, to seal the win for the Cardinals.
Senior Chris Adam also won his singles match today in the matinee competition against the Irish. Adams beat Notre Dame's No. 3 singles player Matthew Che by a 7-6, 6-3 decision.
The Ball State men's tennis team will continue spring play on Jan. 30 at Cleveland State. First serve is at 4 p.m. ET.
For the most up-to-date news on the Ball State men's tennis team, please follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMTNS.
"This was a great win for our team and program," Ball State head men's tennis coach Bill Richards said. "It was a very big upset and I am extremely proud of our guys to have the belief that we could do this. Sajin's win as the last match on was nothing but clutch, very big for a freshman."
Ball State closed the day on a high note claiming the doubles point over Notre Dame in the evening competition. The BSU twosome of Eli Herran and Bryce Bonin were the first duo off the court, earning a 6-1 decision over ND's Connor Fu and Braeden Ho. The Irish then evened doubles action by taking the No. 2 spot from Ball State.
The doubles point would come down to the No. 1 duo of Chris Adams and Vince Orlando who clinched the early 1-0 lead over the Irish after defeating Richard Ciamarra and Matt Gamble, 6-4.
Notre Dame would then earn the first two singles points over the Cardinals to move ahead of BSU, 2-1, after taking positions one and six from Ball State.
Ball State did not give up though and would quickly fight back to even the score at 2-2, starting with Herran's 6-4, 6-1 victory over Notre Dame's No. 5 player Jean-Marc Malkowski. Simmons followed suit to put the Cardinals back in control of the match with his 6-2, 6-3 defeat over Matthew Haplin at the No. 4 slot.
After that, Notre Dame's Connor Fu took No. 2 singles from Ball State to even the score, 3-3.
Ball State needed one more point to claim the win over Notre Dame. The match would come down to true freshman Sajin Smith on court three. Smith, in his first collegiate match, played with confidence to take down Notre Dame's Matt Gamble in a three-set thriller 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, to seal the win for the Cardinals.
Senior Chris Adam also won his singles match today in the matinee competition against the Irish. Adams beat Notre Dame's No. 3 singles player Matthew Che by a 7-6, 6-3 decision.
The Ball State men's tennis team will continue spring play on Jan. 30 at Cleveland State. First serve is at 4 p.m. ET.
For the most up-to-date news on the Ball State men's tennis team, please follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMTNS.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,2,1
Order of Finish:
1,5,2,6,4,3
Players Mentioned
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