Friday, April 23
Charlotte, NC
9 AM
Rice University
0
vs
4
Old Dominion
Owls Fall to ODU in C-USA Quarterfinals
4/23/2021 12:07:00 PM | Men's Tennis
2021 Conference USA Championship
Charlotte, NC: The Rice men's tennis team's 2021 season came to an end as Old Dominion defeated the Owls 4-0 in the quarterfinals of the 2021 Conference USA Men's Tennis Championship at the Halton-Wagner Tennis Complex on Friday.
Doubles: The Monarchs jumped out the early lead with wins at the second and third lines. The match at the first line between Rice's 75th ranked team of Conrad Russell and Sumit Sarkar and ODU's #60 Luca Maldoner and Nicola Vidal was tied at 4-4 with the Monarchs closed out the point.
Singles: When Rice last met ODU in the title match of the 2017 C-USA Championship, they spotted the Monarchs the doubles point but roared back in singles by taking five of six first sets on their way to a 4-3 win. There would be no repeat of that script as ODU stormed to wins in all six first sets and then closed out the match with wins at the second, third and fifth lines. Sarkar evened his match at a set each and was leading 2-1 in the third when the match and the Owls season came to a close.
Efe Ustundag :"It was another battle. ODU is on a par with some of the best teams we faced this year, very strong throughout the lineup. All year long against tough competition, we were so close on a number of occasions, but I think that never getting over the top took a toll on us. We made some strong runs in the second sets, but ODU kept their composure. The one thing you can say about our team was that they always fought and today was no exception. I am proud of them, especially our three seniors (Mohamed Abdel-Aziz, Jacob Eskeland, Conrad Russell) who gave us everything they had and made a huge impact on the culture of this program. They have laid down the challenge for the returners and for our talented group of incoming players to build on this and continue to build this program."
Doubles: The Monarchs jumped out the early lead with wins at the second and third lines. The match at the first line between Rice's 75th ranked team of Conrad Russell and Sumit Sarkar and ODU's #60 Luca Maldoner and Nicola Vidal was tied at 4-4 with the Monarchs closed out the point.
Singles: When Rice last met ODU in the title match of the 2017 C-USA Championship, they spotted the Monarchs the doubles point but roared back in singles by taking five of six first sets on their way to a 4-3 win. There would be no repeat of that script as ODU stormed to wins in all six first sets and then closed out the match with wins at the second, third and fifth lines. Sarkar evened his match at a set each and was leading 2-1 in the third when the match and the Owls season came to a close.
Efe Ustundag :"It was another battle. ODU is on a par with some of the best teams we faced this year, very strong throughout the lineup. All year long against tough competition, we were so close on a number of occasions, but I think that never getting over the top took a toll on us. We made some strong runs in the second sets, but ODU kept their composure. The one thing you can say about our team was that they always fought and today was no exception. I am proud of them, especially our three seniors (Mohamed Abdel-Aziz, Jacob Eskeland, Conrad Russell) who gave us everything they had and made a huge impact on the culture of this program. They have laid down the challenge for the returners and for our talented group of incoming players to build on this and continue to build this program."
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,2
#1 Singles Match
1234
162UF
Luca Maldoner / 0 [ODU]
6410
#2 Singles Match
12
35
Tomislav Podvinski / 0 [ODU]
67
#3 Singles Match
12
45
Nicola Vidal / 0 [ODU]
67
#4 Singles Match
123
64UF
Francois Le Tallec / 0 [ODU]
710
#5 Singles Match
12
34
Younes Lalami / 0 [ODU]
66
#6 Singles Match
123
430
Pearse Dolan / 0 [ODU]
64UF
Order of Finish:
2,5,3
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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