George Washington University Athletics
George Washington University
VCU
GW Men's Tennis Claims Third Consecutive A-10 Crown
4/17/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The George Washington men's tennis team claimed the program's third consecutive Atlantic 10 title and its fifth in the last six seasons with a 4-3 win over VCU in the Atlantic 10 Championship final on Sunday at the indoor Boar's Head Sports Club.
Second-seeded GW won a crucial doubles point to start the championship match, as junior Julius Tverijonas and senior Danil Zelenkov took a 6-3 victory before top-seeded VCU claimed the third-flight bout, 6-2. Sophomore Chris Reynolds and senior Cahit Kapukiran then battled to claim a 7-5 triumph and the critical doubles point to put the Colonials ahead, 1-0.
The Buff and Blue came out on top after going the distance in doubles play for the third consecutive match of the Championship.
"That doubles point was crucial again," said interim head coach Torrie Browning. "To get three doubles points this weekend the way that we have was just amazing, and so important."
The competition remained tight in singles play, as GW took first sets at the top three flights and VCU grabbed first sets at the bottom three spots of the ladder. Reynolds was the first to finish, taking a 6-3, 6-4 triumph at the third position to put the Colonials ahead, 2-0.
"Chris Reynolds has been huge for us; he's been great all season," said Coach Browning. "I've seen a total boost in confidence within Reynolds this season, and that's because he works so hard in practice every day. He's the type of player that is such a good listener - so coachable - Rafa (Aita, assitant coach) and I love working with him. The energy that he brings is great. He cares so much and that's why he does so well."
Tverijonas followed with a 6-3, 6-4 win of his own at the top spot to complete a perfect day on the court and put GW within one point of clinching the title.
"Julius just got it done at one," added Coach Browning. "I think he finally found his game again - the last few weeks he said he wasn't feeling it, but I think he found the right balance of being on the defensive and being aggressive. When he was aggressive, he was on. He played how he needed to play to win."
VCU took a straight-set win at No. 6 for its first point of the day. The Rams' Victor Lima then fought back from a one-set deficit to grab a second-flight victory and put VCU within one of the Colonials.
Sophomore Chris Fletcher battled in his No. 4 contest, pushing the second set to a tie break after dropping the first, but ultimately fell 6-2, 7-6 (7-6) as VCU tied the match at 3-3.
With all eyes on the No. 5 match, Kapukiran overcame a one-set deficit to push the contest to a third, where the senior posted a decisive 6-2 win to clinch the match and the A-10 title for the Colonials.
"With Cahit I wasn't worried," said Coach Browning. "He's had some slow starts this spring, but he finds ways to win, so I wasn't concerned. We talked to him about a few things he should do after that first set, and then he was on it, that was it.
"We have a tradition of excellence here, and we've worked hard to keep that up. With that, there's a huge target on our back. We've done so well for so many years, other teams are always trying to knock us down. But when you come together as a team, anything is possible, and that's what happened today."
GW has knocked off VCU in the A-10 title match in each of the last three seasons.
With the conference title, the Colonials earn the A-10's automatic bid to the NCAA Team Tournament. The NCAA Selection Show will be held on Tuesday, May 3, at 5:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.
George Washington 4, VCU 3
Singles
1. Julius Tverijonas (GW) def. Michal Voscek (VCU) 6-3, 6-4
2. Vitor Lima (VCU) def. Danil Zelenkov (GW) 1-6, 6-2, 6-4
3. Chris Reynolds (GW) def. Daryl Monfils (VCU) 6-3, 6-4
4. Catalin Fifea (VCU) def. Chris Fletcher (GW) 6-2, 7-6(6)
5. Cahit Kapukiran (GW) def. Arvid Noren (VCU) 1-6, 6-1, 6-2
6. Louis Ishizaka (VCU) def. Christos Hadjigeorgiou (GW) 6-2, 6-2
Order of Finish: 3, 1, 6, 2, 4, 5
Doubles
1. Julius Tverijonas/Danil Zelenkov (GW) def. Vitor Lima/Daryl Monfils (VCU), 6-3
2. Cahit Kapukiran/Chris Reynolds (GW) def. Arvid Noren/Louis Ishizaka (VCU), 7-5
3. Michal Voscek/Catalin Fifea (VCU) def. Chris Fletcher/Fernando Sala (GW), 6-2
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2
Players Mentioned
