Kurzban & Rybakov Claim ITA Summer Title
8/14/2018 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
FORT WORTH, Texas – TCU men’s tennis players Max Kurzban and Alex Rybakov won five straight matches to claim the 2018 Oracle ITA National Summer Championships doubles title on Tuesday afternoon at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center in Fort Worth.
With the victory in the finals, the duo won $1,250 in prize money along with main draw entry into the 2018 Saint Francis Health System ITA Men’s All-American Championships that will be held this fall in Tulsa, Okla.
Over the course of the five-day tournament, the duo was able to upend three sets of opponents from Texas schools. Kurzban and Rybakov opened the tournament with a 6-2 victory over Jean Muniz and Angel Palacios of Midwestern State before taking down Jonathan Sheehy and Josh Sheehy of Abilene Christian, 6-4.
In the quarterfinals, the pair faced their toughest test as it took a tiebreaker to defeat Anu Akodali of North Carolina and Bryce Pereira of UCLA. A quick 8-4 victory over Dane Esses and Tyler Schick of Tulane set up a finals showdown with Nikolas Moceanu and Alexandru Grigorescu. The TCU duo were able to pick up the victory in the finals, 8-6, and become the first pair in program history to claim a crown in the summer championships.
Oracle ITA National Summer Championships Results
Doubles
RD 32: Max Kurzban/Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. Jean Muniz/Angel Palacios (MWST): 6-2
RD 16: Max Kurzban/Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. Jonathan Sheehy/Josh Sheehy (ACU): 6-4
QF: Max Kurzban/Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. Anu Kodali (UNC)/Bryce Pereira (UCLA): 8-7 (3)
SF: Max Kurzban/Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. Dane Esses/Tyler Schick (Tulane): 8-4
F: Max Kurzban/Alex Rybakov (TCU) def. Nikolas Moceanu (ACU)/Alexandru Grigorescu (UNO): 8-6
Players Mentioned
