Feb. 14, 2015 Complete Results
THE RUNDOWN
CHICAGO - For the first time since 2005, the 10th-ranked and 11th-seeded Baylor men's tennis team (6-1) advanced to the semifinals of the ITA National Team Indoor Championships with a 4-3 victory over No. 3 Virginia (6-1) Saturday at Midtown Athletic Club.
With the match tied 3-3, senior Mate Zsiga came through in a big way to record a three-set victory that clinched the contest for BU. Playing at the No. 5 position, Zsiga won the first set over Alexander Ritschard, 6-4, before dropping the second, 6-3. He took a 5-3 lead in the deciding set as all eyes turned to his court and then went on take the match, 6-3.
Baylor built an early lead over the Cavaliers in doubles as Vince Schneider and Felipe Rios made quick work of Collin Altamirano and Mitchell Frank, 6-3, at the No. 3 spot. Diego Galeano and Julian Lenz followed up that win by upsetting No. 41 Thai-Son Kwiatkowski and Mac Styslinger, 7-6(2) at the No. 2 position to take the point.
The 10th-ranked Lenz kept the momentum rolling in to singles as he dispatched of Frank, 6-2, 6-0, at the top of the lineup.
After building the 2-0 lead, Baylor would drop the next three singles matches.
First, Galeano fell to Altamirano, 6-1, 6-2, on court four, before Schneider suffered a 6-3, 6-4 setback to Aragone at the No. 6 spot. Virginia pushed the Bears to the brink of defeat as the 67th-ranked Tchoutakian was unable to upset No. 4 Ryan Shane, 4-6, 6-1, 6-1, on court two.
With the match on the line, Tony Lupieri secured the upset of the day. The 27th-ranked senior bested the country's top-ranked player Kwiatkowski, 6-4, 7-6(10), at the No. 3 spot. That win tied the team score at 3-3 and set the stage for Zsiga's heroics. It was a Baylor player's first win over a No. 1 ranked opponent since Julian Lenz beat UCLA's Clay Thompson on March 12, 2014.
NOTABLES
? Baylor will be making its third appearance in the semifinals and is 1-1 all-time in the round (2003 - L, 2005 - W)
? The Bears have won all seven doubles points in their matches this season.
? Baylor last beat a top-three opponent on April 27, 2014 - a 4-3 over No. 3 Oklahoma to win the Big 12 Championship title.
? BU now has a 20-16 all-time record in the indoor championships.
? Baylor last reached the semifinal round of the event in 2005 when the Bears went on to win the title.
? Baylor snapped a seven-match losing streak to Virginia and now trails in the all-time series, 4-8.
? Baylor last beat Virginia on March 17, 2007.
TOP QUOTE #1:
"I'm just proud of really of all the guys. Both teams competed incredibly well. What a great example of what we're all here to do. We're here early in the season trying to play tough matches across the board. It looked to me like every single guy on both teams was really committed and fought hard." - head coach Matt Knoll on the match
TOP QUOTE #2:
"One of his real strengths is his physicality. He's a little different in that way. He doesn't really get tired. If the match goes long, that's a big advantage for him." - Knoll on Mate Zsiga
TOP QUOTE #3:
"They're another great team. We've had some super battles with them and we have a ton of respect for their program. I'm certainly not surprised to see them in the semifinals of this event. We're going to have our hands full. We're going to have to work really hard to bounce back and be ready to play another good team." - Knoll on facing Oklahoma
WHAT'S NEXT
Baylor will now face No. 2 Oklahoma (8-0) Sunday at 12 p.m. CT in the semifinal round of the national event. The Sooners beat 15th-seeded Mississippi, 4-1, in first round action and then took out No. 7 North Carolina, 4-1 to advance to the semifinals.
The all-time series between Baylor and Oklahoma is tied, 20-20. Baylor won the last meeting against the Sooners, but OU claimed two of three matches in 2014. The Sooners currently have four ranked singles players, including No. 11 Axel Alvarez Llamas, No. 26 Andrew Harris, No. 31 Dane Webb and No. 63 Alexandru Ghilea. Oklahoma also has the No. 5 doubles tandem in the country in Alvarez Llamas and Webb.
