Pepperdine Team Page
MALIBU, Calif. – The #8 Pepperdine men’s tennis team finished the regular season with a perfect 8-0 record in the West Coast Conference after defeating #39 BYU 6-1 on Friday afternoon. With the win on Senior Day, the Waves earn the No. 1 seed in the league tournament and receive a bye into the semifinal round.
Pepperdine, 22-5 overall, got off to slow start and lost the doubles point. Although BYU won on courts one and three, Finn Tearney (Wellington, New Zealand/Wellington College) and Alex Sarkissian (Glendale, Calif./Glendale CC) pieced together an impressive victory from the No. 2 spot in the lineup. Tearney and Sarkissian were down 1-5 to Andrey Goryachkov and Spencer Smith before winning seven unanswered games to take the match 8-5.
Pepperdine quickly got back on track in singles, claiming the first sets on all six courts.
Mousheg Hovhannisyan (North Hollywood, Calif./Continental Academy) tallied the Waves’ first point of the day with a 6-1, 6-1 near-shutout over John Pearce.
In the No. 1 match, Sebastian Fanselow (Essen, Germany/Kaplan College Prep) handed Patrick Kawka a 6-2, 6-3 loss to give the Waves the go-ahead point.
Francis Alcantara (Cagayan de Oro, Philippines/Fresno State) won in straight sets at the No. 4 match, while it was David Sofaer (Bellevue Hill, Australia/Sydney Distance Education HS) who put the Waves out of reach with a 6-2, 6-3 triumph over Travis Fillmore.
The teams played out the remaining two matches, and both Sarkissian and Tearney outlasted their respective opponents to complete the singles sweep.
Pepperdine has now won two-straight WCC regular-season titles, after winning the inaugural crown in 2012.
The Waves open action at the 2013 West Coast Conference Tournament next week Friday, April 26 at the Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego. Pepperdine earned a double-bye into the semifinal round by virtue of capturing the No. 1 seed.
Tennis Match Results
BYU vs Pepperdine
Apr 19, 2013 at Malibu, Calif.
(Ralphs-Straus Tennis Center)
#8 Pepperdine 6, #38 BYU 1
Singles
1. #8 Sebastian Fanselow (PEP) def. #38 Patrick Kawka (BYU) 6-2, 6-3
2. #103 Finn Tearney (PEP) def. Spencer Smith (BYU) 6-3, 6-3
3. #92 Alex Sarkissian (PEP) def. Francis Sargeant (BYU) 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
4. #100 Francis Alcantara (PEP) def. Andrey Goryachkov (BYU) 6-4, 6-1
5. Mousheg Hovhannisyan (PEP) def. John Pearce (BYU) 6-1, 6-1
6. David Sofaer (PEP) def. Travis Fillmore (BYU) 6-2, 6-3
Doubles
1. #84 Patrick Kawka/Francis Sargeant (BYU) def. Sebastian Fanselow/Francis Alcantara (PEP) 9-7
2. Finn Tearney/Alex Sarkissian (PEP) def. Andrey Goryachkov/Spencer Smith (BYU) 8-5
3. Travis Fillmore/John Pearce (BYU) def. Damian Gryzelko/Mousheg Hovhannisyan (PEP) 8-6
Match Notes:
BYU 19-5, 6-1 WCC; National ranking #38
Pepperdine 22-5, 8-0 WCC; National ranking #8
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (5,1,4,6,3,2)
