ATHENS, Ga. – A solid effort in singles from Brandon Sutter wouldn't prove to be enough as No. 16 Stanford saw its season come to a close Thursday after falling 4-0 to No. 1 Wake Forest in the NCAA round of 16.
The Cardinal (18-9) opened the match strong with Michael Genender and Sameer Kumar taking a 6-4 win in doubles, but Wake Forest (30-2) answered with a 6-3 win at No. 3. Tom Fawcett and Yale Goldberg played a great match against the 4th-ranked Skander Mansouri and Christian Seraphim, but the Deacs prevailed 7-5 to take the point.
"First, congrats to Wake Forest," said Taube Director of Men's Tennis Paul Goldstein. "This Cardinal team is the most resilient bunch that I have been around and it has been a pleasure and a privilege to work with them throughout the year. They have dealt with some incredible adversity, not only with some injuries, but also with some off-court stuff. I feel very proud of this team and how they have stayed the course throughout the year despite a lot of adversity."
Stanford came out tough to open singles with Sutter grabbing a quick 3-0 lead as the Cardinal led in every set except for two. Wake Forest battled back though, taking first-set wins at every position except five where Sutter took a 6-3 win.
The rest was all Wake Forest as the Deacons cruised to straight-set wins at Nos. 1, 4 and 3 for the clincher as Sutter continued to fight for a Cardinal point at 5, but was unable to finish with the match being abandoned.
"As a program we play for more than just ourselves," continued Goldstein. "We made a stride as a program in this season in terms of hosting the NCAA's at home for the first time in five years, and getting to this place. I am really happy for this group to be able to play at such an iconic tennis venue, so I am very happy for them. As a program, we are not at all where we need to be and where I want us to be, but we did take a step this year."
The loss wraps the Cardinal's season with its second consecutive and 29th overall appearance in the NCAA round of 16. Fawcett will represent the Cardinal next week when the NCAA singles championship begins.
No. 1 Wake Forest 4, No. 16 Stanford 0
DOUBLES
1) No. 4 Mansouri/Seraphim (WAKE) d. No. 54 Fawcett/Yale Goldberg (STAN) 7-5
2) Genender/Kumar (STAN) d. Gadjiev/Gojo (WAKE) 6-4
3) Chrysochos/Uspensky (WAKE) d. Sutter/Wilczynski (STAN) 6-3
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1
SINGLES
1) No. 5 Petros Chrysochos (WAKE) d. No.11 Tom Fawcett (STAN) 6-2, 6-0
2) Sameer Kumar (STAN) led No. 45 Borna Gojo (WAKE) 6-4, 2-5, abandoned
3) No. 13 Skander Mansouri (WAKE) d. David Wilczynski (STAN) 6-4, 6-2
4) No. 84 Christian Seraphim (WAKE) d. Michael Genender (STAN) 6-2, 6-2
5) Brandon Sutter (STAN) led Dennis Uspensky (WAKE) 6-3, 4-5, abandoned
6) Alan Gadjiev (WAKE) led William Genesen (STAN) 6-4, 2-4, abandoned
Order of Finish: 1, 4, 3
