TCU
#43 Baylor
Big 12 Champions!
4/20/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 20, 2016
Final Stats | Photo Gallery 
FORT WORTH, Texas - History was made on Wednesday night as the No. 4 TCU men's tennis team clinched at least a share of the 2016 Big 12 regular season title for the first time in program history with a 4-0 win over No. 43 Baylor in front of the largest crowd of the season of 1,816 fans in the home finale at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center.
The Horned Frogs' (22-2, 4-0 Big 12) opened the match with dominant doubles play as the duo of Cameron Norrie and Alex Rybakov continued their undefeated streak with a 6-1 victory on court three to move to 9-0 this season. Hudson Blake and Reese Stalder finished out the doubles point with their fifth straight victory and third over a ranked foe with a 6-4 topping of the Bears' (14-12, 1-4 Big 12) No. 77 ranked pair of Max Tchoutakian and Tommy Podvinski.
Singles went all in TCU's favor as the Frogs picked up the first set win in all six matches. Captain Trevor Johnson put point No. 2 on the board and won his ninth match in the last 10 with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Tyler Stayer. Jerry Lopez followed with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Podvinski on court five for the junior's 23rd win this season. Rybakov finished off the victory for the second straight match as the freshman earned his fifth consecutive victory with a 6-2, 6-4 win over No. 87 Tchoutakian on court two to seal the win.
Notes
-With the 4-0 win over Baylor, TCU wins at least a share of the Big 12 regular season title for the first time in program history
-Today's win marks the first regular season conference crown since 2009 when the team won the Mountain West regular season title
-The four wins TCU currently has in Big 12 play is the most wins the team has recorded since joining the conference in 2012
-To outright win the regular season crown, TCU must defeat Texas Tech in Lubbock in the regular season finale this Sunday, April 24
-The win also guarantees TCU a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the 2016 Big 12 Conference Championship and a first round bye
-The 2016 Big 12 Regular Season Conference title is the first under head coach David Roditi
-As a player at TCU, Roditi captured two regular season crowns - the 1994 and 1996 SWC Regular Season titles
-TCU has now won 17 straight matches and put together 28 consecutive victories at home on the Bernard J. `Tut' Bartzen Varsity Courts
-The win over Baylor marks the team's 20th win this season over a ranked foe
Quotes of the Match
Head Coach David Roditi
Opening Statement
"This is a special accomplishment for our program and for this group of guys. We have such a young team and I don't think they even realize what they just accomplished. I know some of our guys that just graduated realize how hard it is to win this conference in tennis and in any sport. This is just such a competitive conference and I am proud of that.
"I hope our fans really enjoy this. This is for them and this is for the guys that have helped us get to this level and be able to recruit these guys that we just did. There is a lot of people that made this happen and I am just proud to be part of it as a coach and as an alumni."
On the singles and doubles matches
"I felt like we competed really well tonight. We got out of some moments like being down 0-40 on our serves and we would come back and hold. Anytime they were making a run at us, we just dug in deeper and deeper and were able to get out. When Guillermo (Nuñez) won that sixth first set, I think it just kind of broke their will. It was hard for them to look around and see where they were going to get four points.
"I am really proud of our guys and I wish Cameron (Norrie) had a chance to finish his match because he deserved that win over a very good player in Julian Lenz. Lenz has been beating us for what feels like 10 years so it would have been nice to see Cameron beat him. In doubles, Hudson (Blake) and Reese (Stalder) are playing at such a high level. The way Hudson closed out that doubles point was pretty impressive. He just loves to compete and I love that about him."
Match Results
Baylor vs TCU
Apr 20, 2016 at Fort Worth, Texas
(Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center)
#4 TCU 4, #43 Baylor 0
Singles competition
1. #5 Cameron Norrie (TCU) vs. #15 Julian Lenz (BU) 6-4, 4-3, unfinished
2. #24 Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. #87 Max Tchoutakian (BU) 6-2, 6-4
3. #88 Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) vs. Felipe Rios (BU) 7-5, 3-3, unfinished
4. Eduardo Nava (TCU) vs. Jimmy Bendeck (BU) 6-4, 5-4, unfinished
5. Jerry Lopez (TCU) def. Tommy Podvinski (BU) 6-2, 6-3
6. Trevor Johnson (TCU) def. Tyler Stayer (BU) 6-1, 6-0
Doubles competition
1. #73 Reese Stalder/Hudson Blake (TCU) def. #77 Max Tchoutakian/Tommy Podvinski (BU) 6-4
2. Trevor Johnson/Guillermo Nuñez (TCU) vs. Felipe Rios/Jimmy Bendeck (BU) 4-4, unfinished
3. Cameron Norrie/Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. Julian Lenz/Tyler Stayer (BU) 6-1
Match Notes:
Baylor 14-12, 1-4; National ranking #43
TCU 22-2, 4-0; National ranking #4
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (6,5,2)
A-1816
Up Next
TCU will wrap-up the regular season on the road by traveling to Lubbock, Texas to take on No. 9 Texas Tech on Sunday, April 24 at 1 p.m.
Players Mentioned
