SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Playing in his first collegiate match, freshman Luca Lemaitre delivered the 3-all match clincher to complete Santa Clara men's tennis' 4-3 comeback victory over Cal on Sunday. The Broncos trailed 3-1 before reeling off three-straight singles victories, topped by Lemaitre's thrilling three-set win over Jonathan Irwanto.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The doubles point came down to the wire in favor of Santa Clara (1-0). After dropping the first doubles match, the Broncos came back winning the next two matches, both in tiebreakers. Sebastian Buxman, a mid-year enrollee playing in his first Santa Clara match, teamed up with Arjun Honnappa to down Alex Chang and Timofey Stepanov 7-6 (8-6) to clinch the doubles point.
- Cal (0-1) took the first three singles matches to lead 3-1, picking up wins on courts two, three and six.
- Honnappa closed the gap to 3-2 when he downed Derrick Chen in straight sets 7-5, 6-2 on court five.
- Christian Lerby evened the match at 3-all with his 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) win over Carl Emil Overbeck atop the singles lineup.
- Playing on court four, Lemaitre won the final three points to pull out the victory against Irwanto 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5).
HIGHLIGHT/POST-MATCH INTERVIEW:
RESULTS:
Santa Clara 4, Cal 3
1/21/2024 at Santa Clara, Calif. (Degheri Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1.
Christian Lerby (SCUMTEN) def. Carl Emil Overbeck (CALMTEN) 6-3, 7-6 (7-3)
2. Ryder Jackson (CALMTEN) def.
Guillaume Dalmasso (SCUMTEN) 6-2, 6-3
3. Alex Chang (CALMTEN) def.
Sebastian Buxman (SCUMTEN) 6-2, 6-2
4.
Luca Lemaitre (SCUMTEN) def. Jonathan Irwanto (CALMTEN) 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5)
5.
Arjun Honnappa (SCUMTEN) def. Derrick Chen (CALMTEN) 7-5, 6-2
6. Timofey Stepanov (CALMTEN) def. Alexander W Eriksson (SCUMTEN) 6-4, 6-1
Doubles competition
1.
Guillaume Dalmasso/
Christian Lerby (SCUMTEN) def. Ryder Jackson/Derrick Chen (CALMTEN) 7-6 (7-3)
2. Carl Emil Overbeck/Mikey Wright (CALMTEN) def.
Luca Lemaitre/
Tiago Boschmans (SCUMTEN) 6-2
3.
Sebastian Buxman/
Arjun Honnappa (SCUMTEN) def. Alex Chang/Timofey Stepanov (CALMTEN) 7-6 (8-6)
Match Notes
Cal 0-1
Santa Clara 1-0
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (2,3,6,5,1,4)
Match originally scheduled to be played Sat, Jan. 20 but postponed due to rain.
NEXT UP:
- The Broncos head up to Moraga to play Saint Mary's in a nonconference match on Wednesday. It is a replacement for the Idaho match that was canceled due to rain.
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