Michigan
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Western Michigan
Michigan Moves Past Western Michigan in NCAA First Round
5/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Varsity Tennis Center)
Event: NCAA Championship (First Round)
Score: #16 Michigan 4, Western Michigan 1
Records: U-M (19-6), Western Michigan (20-8)
Next U-M Match: Sunday, May 11 -- vs. Texas Tech in NCAA Regional Championship (Varsity Tennis Center), 2 p.m.
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ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 16-ranked University of Michigan men's tennis team earned a hard-fought 4-1 victory over Western Michigan in the first round of the 2008 NCAA Championship Saturday afternoon (May 10) at U-M's Varsity Tennis Center. The host Wolverines (19-6) dropped a tightly contested doubles point but battled back to record four straight-set singles wins and advance to the second round for the second straight year.
Senior Matko Maravic(Zagreb, Croatia/V. Gimnazija) and junior Andrew Mazlin(Altamonte Springs, Fla./Lyman HS) got off to a fast start against Alex Birchmeier and Bryan Norville at No. 1 doubles, claiming six of the first seven games en route to an 8-5 victory. Sophomore Mike Sroczynski(Chatham, N.J./Laurel Springs School) and freshman Jason Jung(Torrance, Calif./West Torrance HS) had a bit of a tougher time finding a rhythm at No. 2, with the pair falling behind 5-2 to Casey Cullen and Kevin Hayward. The Wolverine tandem earned a break and cut the deficit to 6-5, but Cullen and Hayward took care of their two remaining service games to wrap up an 8-6 win.
In the decisive match at No. 3, Michael Calderone and Kazuya Komada outlasted sophomore George Navas(Tampa, Fla./Tampa Preparatory School) and freshman Chris Madden(Lotus, Calif./Ponderosa HS) by a 9-8(3) score to give the Broncos a 1-0 lead. With the score knotted at 7-7, the teams exchanged breaks to send the match to a tiebreaker, in which Calderone and Kazuya won five of the first seven points en route to victory.
Michigan regrouped and came out firing in singles, as Maravic evened the match with a solid 6-3, 6-4 decision over Hayward at No. 1. Madden avenged his tough doubles loss by defeating Norville at No. 5, 6-2, 6-4, to give U-M its first lead of the day. Madden has won 16 of 20 in dual-match play in his first season. Navas also bounced back in singles, securing a 7-6(3), 6-3 triumph over Calderone at No. 6 to bring the Wolverines within one win of advancing to the second round.
Mazlin, Michigan's newly crowned Most Valuable Player, lived up to his title with a 7-5, 6-3 over Alejandro Staub at No. 3. Mazlin fell behind 5-3 in the first set before stringing together four straight games to win the frame. He then took charge in the second set to clinch the team victory and complete his career-high 19th dual-match win.
The Wolverines will face No. 17-ranked Texas Tech, a 4-2 first-round winner over Harvard, in the NCAA Championship second round Sunday (May 11) at 2 p.m. U-M will be looking for its first bid to the NCAA Sweet16 since 1988.
Following are match-by-match results:
Singles
No. 1 -- #64 Matko Maravic (U-M) d. Kevin Hayward, 6-3, 6-4
No. 2 -- Jason Jung (U-M) vs. Alex Birchmeier, 6-7(1), 4-3 (unfinished)
No. 3 -- Andrew Mazlin (U-M) d. Alejandro Staub, 7-5, 6-3
No. 4 -- Mike Sroczynski (U-M) vs. Kazuya Komada, 4-6, 6-4, 1-1 (unfinished)
No. 5 -- Chris Madden (U-M) d. Bryan Norville, 6-2, 6-4
No. 6 -- George Navas (U-M) d. Michael Calderone, 7-6(3), 6-3
Doubles
No. 1 -- Maravic/Mazlin (U-M) d. Birchmeier/Norville, 8-5
No. 2 -- Casey Cullen/Hayward (Western Michigan) d. #38 Jung/Sroczynski, 8-6
No. 3 -- Calderone/Komada (Western Michigan) d. Madden/Navas, 9-8(3)
Order of Completion: Doubles 1-2-3, Singles 1-5-6-3
Contact: Marc Ressler (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
