DePaul University Athletics
Friday, May 6
Lexington, KY
12:00 P.M. CT
DePaul University
0
at
4
Kentucky
DePaul Falls 4-0 to No. 9 Kentucky at NCAA Championship Opener
5/6/2022 3:11:00 PM | MEN'S TENNIS
Luuk Wassenaar battled back to win the second set Friday at No. 4 singles
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Two-time BIG EAST champion DePaul ran into one of the top teams in the nation Friday at the NCAA Men's Tennis Championship.
Host No. 9 Kentucky swept a pair of doubles matches for an early 1-0 lead and followed up in the singles round for a 4-0 victory in the NCAA First Round.
The Wildcats (22-7) advance to the Second Round and will face Northwestern (20-10) which eliminated East Tennessee State 4-0 on Friday.
The Bluegrass State's doubles team of Francois Musitelli and Millen Hurrion are ranked No. 55 in the country, but Vito Tonejc and Marino Jakic stayed right with them in their No. 1 doubles showdown. The Wildcat duo held a slim 4-3 lead when the match was halted after their teammates prevailed at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles.
Kentucky displayed the talented, deep roster that enabled the host to take down nine nationally ranked opponents this season including No. 5 Tennessee and No. 10 Georgia.
The Blue Demons (13-13) gave it their best shot against some pretty tough odds. Four Kentucky starters in its singles lineup are ranked nationally led by No. 4 Liam Draxl who opposed Tonejc in the top singles matchup and No. 21 Gabriel Diallo who squared off against Jakic in the No. 2 slot.
Both Tonejc and Jakic were even at 3-3 in their first sets until the Wildcats' best closed out with a 6-4 verdict in each match. Tonejc was competing hard in the second set and within 4-3 when the match was cut short. Jakic fell 6-4, 6-1
But Luuk Wassenaar came through with the shining moment of the day battling back to take the second set against Musitelli at No. 4. Wassenaar never had a chance to win the third set as the match was halted after Kentucky clinched.
Despite Friday's setback, it has been another groundbreaking season for coach Matt Brothers and his team. They became the first DePaul men's tennis program to win consecutive conference titles and only the second all-time to compete in the NCAA tournament.
The Blue Demons are the first team since 2013 (Notre Dame) to sweep all three BIG EAST postseason major awards with Tonejc repeating as BIG EAST Player of the Year, Jakic taking home Freshman of the Year honors and Brothers heading up the league's Coaching Staff of the Year.
Tonejc is the first to win Player of the Year outright in back-to-back years since Greg Andrews (Notre Dame) in 2012 and 2013. The junior from Zagreb, Croatia was All-BIG EAST First Team and his countryman Jakic was Second Team.
After going 3-0 at the BIG EAST tournament and leading his team to the title, Jakic was honored with the Most Outstanding Player Award.
NCAA Championship
No. 9 Kentucky 4, DePaul 0
May 6, 2022
(Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex)
Singles
1. #4 Liam Draxl (UK) vs. Vito Tonejc (DPU) 6-4, 4-3, unfinished
2. #21 Gabriel Diallo (UK) def. Marino Jakic (DPU) 6-4, 6-1
3. #83 Millen Hurrion (UK) def. Leon Huck (DPU) 6-3, 6-3
4. Francois Musitelli (UK) vs. Luuk Wassenaar (DPU) 6-2, 3-6, unfinished
5. #113 Joshua Lapadat (UK) def. Matteo Iaquinto (DPU) 6-2, 6-2
6. JJ Mercer (UK) vs. Tripp Tuff (DPU) 6-3, 3-2, unfinished
Doubles
1. #55 Millen Hurrion/Francois Musitelli (UK) vs. Vito Tonejc/Marino Jakic (DPU) 4-3, unfinished
2. Gabriel Diallo/Joshua Lapadat (UK) def. Jona Gitschel/Leon Huck (DPU) 6-1
3. Liam Draxl/Alexandre LeBlanc (UK) def. Tripp Tuff/Luuk Wassenaar (DPU) 6-0
Match Notes:
DePaul 13-13
Kentucky 22-7; National ranking #9
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (5,2,3)
Host No. 9 Kentucky swept a pair of doubles matches for an early 1-0 lead and followed up in the singles round for a 4-0 victory in the NCAA First Round.
The Wildcats (22-7) advance to the Second Round and will face Northwestern (20-10) which eliminated East Tennessee State 4-0 on Friday.
The Bluegrass State's doubles team of Francois Musitelli and Millen Hurrion are ranked No. 55 in the country, but Vito Tonejc and Marino Jakic stayed right with them in their No. 1 doubles showdown. The Wildcat duo held a slim 4-3 lead when the match was halted after their teammates prevailed at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles.
Kentucky displayed the talented, deep roster that enabled the host to take down nine nationally ranked opponents this season including No. 5 Tennessee and No. 10 Georgia.
The Blue Demons (13-13) gave it their best shot against some pretty tough odds. Four Kentucky starters in its singles lineup are ranked nationally led by No. 4 Liam Draxl who opposed Tonejc in the top singles matchup and No. 21 Gabriel Diallo who squared off against Jakic in the No. 2 slot.
Both Tonejc and Jakic were even at 3-3 in their first sets until the Wildcats' best closed out with a 6-4 verdict in each match. Tonejc was competing hard in the second set and within 4-3 when the match was cut short. Jakic fell 6-4, 6-1
But Luuk Wassenaar came through with the shining moment of the day battling back to take the second set against Musitelli at No. 4. Wassenaar never had a chance to win the third set as the match was halted after Kentucky clinched.
Despite Friday's setback, it has been another groundbreaking season for coach Matt Brothers and his team. They became the first DePaul men's tennis program to win consecutive conference titles and only the second all-time to compete in the NCAA tournament.
The Blue Demons are the first team since 2013 (Notre Dame) to sweep all three BIG EAST postseason major awards with Tonejc repeating as BIG EAST Player of the Year, Jakic taking home Freshman of the Year honors and Brothers heading up the league's Coaching Staff of the Year.
Tonejc is the first to win Player of the Year outright in back-to-back years since Greg Andrews (Notre Dame) in 2012 and 2013. The junior from Zagreb, Croatia was All-BIG EAST First Team and his countryman Jakic was Second Team.
After going 3-0 at the BIG EAST tournament and leading his team to the title, Jakic was honored with the Most Outstanding Player Award.
NCAA Championship
No. 9 Kentucky 4, DePaul 0
May 6, 2022
(Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex)
Singles
1. #4 Liam Draxl (UK) vs. Vito Tonejc (DPU) 6-4, 4-3, unfinished
2. #21 Gabriel Diallo (UK) def. Marino Jakic (DPU) 6-4, 6-1
3. #83 Millen Hurrion (UK) def. Leon Huck (DPU) 6-3, 6-3
4. Francois Musitelli (UK) vs. Luuk Wassenaar (DPU) 6-2, 3-6, unfinished
5. #113 Joshua Lapadat (UK) def. Matteo Iaquinto (DPU) 6-2, 6-2
6. JJ Mercer (UK) vs. Tripp Tuff (DPU) 6-3, 3-2, unfinished
Doubles
1. #55 Millen Hurrion/Francois Musitelli (UK) vs. Vito Tonejc/Marino Jakic (DPU) 4-3, unfinished
2. Gabriel Diallo/Joshua Lapadat (UK) def. Jona Gitschel/Leon Huck (DPU) 6-1
3. Liam Draxl/Alexandre LeBlanc (UK) def. Tripp Tuff/Luuk Wassenaar (DPU) 6-0
Match Notes:
DePaul 13-13
Kentucky 22-7; National ranking #9
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (5,2,3)
Players Mentioned
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