Saturday, 01/28/2012

MALIBU, Calif. – The #12 Pepperdine men’s tennis team swept #36 Vanderbilt to improve to a perfect 3-0 on the season and qualify for the ITA National Team Indoor Championships in February. It is the first time the Waves have advanced to the national event since the 2009 season.

Pepperdine struck first, winning on courts one and two to claim the doubles point. Sebastian Fanselow (Essen, Germany/Kaplan College Prep) and Jenson Turner (Woodland Hills, Calif./Campbell Hall HS) found themselves down a game but rallied to beat Alex DiValerio and Joe Dorn, 8-5.

Finn Tearney (Wellington, New Zealand/Wellington College) and Alex Llompart (Carolina, Puerto Rico/San Juan Educational School) clinched the point with an 8-3 triumph in the top match.

Mousheg Hovhannisyan (North Hollywood, Calif./Continental Academy) and Hugh Clarke (Brisbane, Australia/Brisbane Boys College) battled game-for-game but down 6-7, the duo was unable to come up with a break and suffered an 8-6 loss.

Hovhannisyan quickly put the Waves up 2-0 after giving up a just one game in a straight-set victory from the #3-spot in the lineup. Fanselow extended the home team’s lead with a 6-1, 6-2 triumph versus Gonzales Austin.

Llompart scored point #4 for Pepperdine with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Anton Kovrigin. The senior was up 5-3 in the second set, but found himself down 40-love with Kovrigin serving. Llompart continued to fight back point-by-point, until the game was tied at deuce. Two points later, Llompart broke serve to secure the win.

Tearney, ranked #35 in the Campbell’s/ITA Collegiate singles rankings, went head-to-head with #87-ranked Charlie Jones in the top match. After Tearney took the first set 6-2, Jones returned the favor with a 6-2 win in the second frame.

With the dual decided, the teams elected to play a 10-point tiebreaker to determine the winner. Tearney took an 8-3 lead before Jones came back within two at 8-6. The junior Wave was able to close it out and put the final two points on the board to win the match.

In the final contest to finish, David Sofaer (Bellevue Hill, Australia/Sydney Distance Education HS) was in an evenly matched battle with Jeff Offerdahl. After taking the first set in the tiebreaker, Sofaer once again found himself tied at 6-6 in the second set.

Although he fell behind 3-5, the sophomore roared back to win 8-6.

With the win, the Waves qualify for the 16-team ITA National Indoor Team Championships on Feb. 17-21 in Charlottesville, Va.

Next up, Pepperdine travels to the Midwest to face top-10 ranked teams in Ohio State (Feb. 3) and Kentucky (Feb. 5).

#12 Pepperdine 7, #36 Vanderbilt 0

Singles

1. #35 Finn Tearney (PEP) def. #87 Charlie Jones (VANDY) 6-2, 2-6, 10-7
2. #21 Sebastian Fanselow (PEP) def. Gonzales Austin (VANDY) 6-1, 6-2
3. #49 Mousheg Hovhannisyan (PEP) def. Joe Dorn (VANDY) 6-0, 6-1
4. Alex Llompart (PEP) def. Anton Kovrigin (VANDY) 6-3, 6-3
5. David Sofaer (PEP) def. Jeff Offerdahl (VANDY) 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (8-6)
6. Jenson Turner (PEP) def. Alex DiValerio (VANDY) 6-2, 7-5
Order of finish: 2, 1, 3

Doubles

1. Finn Tearney/Alex Llompart (PEP) def. Charlie Jones/Jeff Offerdahl (VANDY) 8-3
2. Sebastian Fanselow/Jenson Turner (PEP) def. Alex DiValerio/Joe Dorn (VANDY) 8-5
3. Anton Kovrigin/Gonzales Austin (VANDY) def. Hugh Clarke/Mousheg Hovhannisyan (PEP) 8-6

Order of finish:  3,2,4,6,1,5