Blue Demons Rally to Punch Their Ticket to BIG EAST Title Match

Saturday, April 20

Cayce, S.C.

11:45 A.M. CT

DePaul University

Georgetown

Blue Demons Rally to Punch Their Ticket to BIG EAST Title Match

4/20/2024 5:41:00 PM | MEN'S TENNIS

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Iaquinto clinches at No. 4 in dramatic fashion as DePaul downs Georgetown 4-3

CAYCE, S.C. – With their backs against the wall and the season in the balance, DePaul never wavered as Matteo Iaquinto provided the heroics on court four to lift the Blue Demons to a 4-3 victory over Georgetown in the BIG EAST Semifinals on Saturday afternoon. DePaul advances to its third title match in the last four seasons to set up a match against No. 1 seed St. John's on Monday, April 22 at 8 a.m. CT.

The Blue Demons extended their win-streak to four-straight matches and have won eight of the last 10 meetings against the Hoyas.

Facing an uphill battle at the onset, DePaul dropped the doubles point with a pair of defeats at No. 1 and No. 2 despite a 6-1 winner on court three from Vito Tonejc and Iaquinto.

DePaul (13-9) turned the page in singles play, winning the first set on four of six courts.

At No. 6, Sven Moser earned his third-straight victory with a decisive 6-4, 6-0 triumph over Georgetown's Sahil Morey to even the match at 1-1.

Leon Huck moved to 3-1 this season at No. 2 with a 6-4, 7-5 win against Zamaan Moledina. After claiming the first set, Huck trailed 4-1 in the second and rallied to put the match away 7-5 in the decider and put the Blue Demons in front 2-1.

Georgetown (15-8) claimed a win on court one to even the match before Pablo Torres Almeida won his ninth-consecutive contest in a gutsy 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5) performance at No. 5. The sophomore bounced back from a set down and weathered a back-and-forth third set to win in a breaker and give DePaul a 3-2 advantage.

The Hoyas drew even with a three-set win on court three to turn all eyes to No. 4 between Iaquinto and Kieran Foster of Georgetown. Iaquinto claimed the first set handily before Foster responded in the second to force a deciding third. The Palmero, Italy native exhibited great resolve, roaring back from down 4-1 in the third to win the next five games and send the Blue Demons into the title match.

Up Next: No. 2 DePaul and No. 1 St. John's will vie for the title on Monday, April 22 at the Cayce Tennis & Fitness Center. First serve is set for 8 a.m. CT with coverage carried on the BIG EAST Digital Network via FloSports. The two programs last met in the 2022 championship match, a 4-2 DePaul victory which gave the Blue Demons back-to-back titles.

Match Results
No. 2 DePaul (13-9) 4
No. 3 Georgetown (15-8) 3
Cayce, S.C. | Cayce Tennis & Fitness Center

Singles

Jake Fellows (Georgetown) def. Vito Tonejc (DePaul), 6-4, 7-5
Leon Huck (DePaul) def. Zamaan Moledina (Georgetown), 6-4, 7-5
Arthur O'Sullivan (Georgetown) def. Shourya Verma (DePaul), 6-4, 3-6, 3-6
Matteo Iaquinto (DePaul) def. Kieran Foster (Georgetown), 6-3, 2-6, 6-4
Pablo Torres Almeida (DePaul) def. Adhvyte (Georgetown), 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-5)
Sven Moser (DePaul) def. Sahil Morey (Georgetown), 6-4, 6-0

Doubles

Kieran Foster/Zamaan Moledina (Georgetown) def. Jona Gitschel/Shourya Verma (DePaul), 6-2
Arthur O'Sullivan/Jake Fellows (Georgetown) def. Leon Huck/Sven Moser (DePaul), 6-3
Vito Tonejc/Matteo Iaquinto (DePaul) def. Adhvyte Sharma/Burke Pablo (Georgetown), 6-1