EVANSTON, Ill. – The UofL men’s tennis team continues to dominate as they secured a 4-3 victory against Northwestern on Sunday afternoon, remaining undefeated. In a nail-biting match, the Cardinals rallied and produced two remarkable come-from-behind victories in three-set singles matches to secure the win.
Head coach Rodrigo da Silva expressed his pride in the team’s competitive spirit, stating, “I’m very proud of how the guys competed today. To come back from losing five first sets in an away match is amazing. Now, it’s time to go back to the drawing board to make sure we don’t put ourselves in that situation again.”
The Cardinals started the day strong with Natan Rodrigues and Etienne Donnet clinching a win in the doubles competition from the top spot, securing their second victory of the season. However, Will Mayew and Enrique Peña were defeated on Court 2, leaving the doubles point to be decided by Andre’ Steinbach and Miguel Avendaño.
Steinbach and Avendaño, despite initially falling behind 3-1, continued to battle back and eventually emerged victorious in a hard-fought match, clinching the doubles point with a 7-5 win for Louisville (3-0). This marked the duo’s second doubles victory this season.
In the singles matches, Donnet started off strong for the Cardinals, defeating his opponent in straight sets with scores of 6-4, 6-1. However, Northwestern (0-3) responded with three consecutive wins on Courts 5, 3, and 6, taking a 3-2 lead and increasing the pressure on Louisville.
Mayew, ranked within the top 60, displayed great resilience and bounced back to claim victory in his match on Court 4 with scores of 7-6, 6-3, 6-3, leveling the score at 3-3 and leaving the decisive match point in Rodrigues’ hands on Court 2.
After a tough first set loss of 6-7, Rodrigues made an impressive comeback, winning the second set in a tiebreaker and forcing a third set. He ultimately triumphed with a dominant performance, securing the final set at 6-2, nearly four hours after the match began.
Next up, the Cardinals will travel to Columbia, S.C., to compete in the ITA Kickoff Weekend. Their first match will be against LSU on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET, followed by a match against either South Carolina or Clemson on Sunday.
Louisville’s men’s tennis team emerges victorious with a 4-3 win over Northwestern. The Cardinals displayed great determination and resilience, coming back from losing five first sets to secure the victory. Head coach Rodrigo da Silva commended the team’s performance, and the Cardinals now turn their focus to future matches, aiming to improve and avoid similar challenges in the future.
