STANFORD, Calif. – Brandon Sutter claimed his team-leading fifth clinching point Friday as the 16th-seeded Cardinal swept past Idaho 4-0 to open the NCAA first round at Taube Family Tennis Stadium.
Stanford (17-8) opened the match by capturing a tightly-contested doubles point for a 1-0 lead, led by a 6-4 win from Sutter and David Wilczynski at No. 3. Sameer Kumar and Michael Genender were forced to battle back at No. 2, but were able to clinch it 7-5.
"I enjoyed today's competition," said Taube Director of Men's Tennis Paul Goldstein. "Idaho was a competitive and classy team that we have a lot of respect for. The guys worked hard to get here for the opportunity to play against a quality opponent for the chance to advance to the round of 16 in Athens, which is a special place."
Tom Fawcett made it a quick 2-0 as he collected a straight-sets win at No. 1 to move to 11-5 in duals and improve his win streak to three. The Vandals (16-8) scrapped back at No. 2, though Kumar was able to win in the tiebreak 6-4, 7-6 (3).
Sutter cruised to a 6-3 win in the first set, but Lucas Coutinho forced the Cardinal into the tiebreak in the second. A down-to-the-wire battle saw Sutter take the win 7-6 (3) and send Stanford into Saturday's second round.
"I'm proud of the work the team has put in," said Goldstein. "I would truly love to see Taube packed with support for this team, though no one will be a bigger fan of the six men playing tomorrow for Stanford than myself."
The Cardinal owns a storied history in collegiate tennis - all-time Stanford is 107-22 in the NCAA Tournament. The Cardinal has won 17 NCAA championships, including 15 since the NCAA Tournament went to its present format in 1977. The most recent crown came back in 2000, when Stanford blanked VCU 4-0.
Stanford will face Michigan tomorrow in the NCAA second round after the Wolverines topped the Valpo Crusaders 4-0 in the day's earlier match. The match is set for 4 p.m. PT after the conclusion of the women's NCAA first round matches. Tickets are available here.
No. 16 Stanford 4, Idaho 0
DOUBLES
1) Kovacs/Longhi Neto (IDAHO) led No. 54 Fawcett/Yale Goldberg (STAN) 5-4, susp.
2) Genender/Kumar (STAN) d. Coutinho/Santibanez (IDAHO) 7-5
3) Sutter/Wilczynski (STAN) d. Fonseca/Scarpelli (IDAHO) 6-4
Order of Finish: 3, 2
SINGLES
1) No. 11 Tom Fawcett (STAN) d. Mark Kovacs (IDAHO) 6-2, 6-3
2) Sameer Kumar (STAN) d. Felipe Fonseca (IDAHO) 6-4, 7-6 (3)
3) David Wilczynski (STAN) led Carlos Longhi Neto (IDAHO) 4-6, 6-1, 2-1, susp.
4) Michael Genender (STAN) led Esteban Santibanez (IDAHO) 6-3, 5-5, susp.
5) Brandon Sutter (STAN) d. Lucas Coutinho (IDAHO) 6-3, 7-6 (5)
6) William Genesen (STAN) led Guilherme Scarpelli (IDAHO) 2-6, 6-1, 4-2, susp.
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 5
- - - - - - - - - - - -
No. 17 Michigan 4, Valparaiso 0
DOUBLES
1) No. 41 Emhardt/Schorsch (VALPO) d. No. 29 Connor Johnston/Malik (MICH) 6-2
2) Hua/Knight (MICH) d. Bacalla/Kissll (VALPO) 7-5
3) Schalet/Wong (MICH) d. Dunn/Gardner (VALPO) 6-3
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2
SINGLES
1) Jeffrey Schorsch (VALPO) led No. 72 Jathan Malik (MICH) 3-6, 6-4, 5-4, susp.
2) No. 86 Alex Knight (MICH) d. Chad Kissell (VALPO) 6-2, 6-2
3) Myles Schalet (MICH) vs. Charlie Emhardt (VALPO) 2-6, 6-3, 3-3, susp.
4) Runhao Hua (MICH) d. Dave Bacalla (VALPO) 3-6, 6-0, 6-3
5) Kevin Wong (MICH) led Kyle Dunn (VALPO) 3-6, 6-4, 3-1, susp.
6) Carter Lin (MICH) d. Brandon Ancona (VALPO) 6-2, 6-4
Order of Finish: 2, 6, 4
