COLLEGE STATION, Texas – For the 11th consecutive season, Stanford men’s tennis has advanced to the second round of the NCAA Championship. The No. 18 Cardinal outlasted No. 43 Penn on Texas A&M’s campus, 4-1, to continue in the tournament.
After a rainout pushed its tournament opener to Saturday, Stanford got out to a slow start as the Quakers collected the doubles point. Nico Godsick and Hudson Rivera cruised to a 6-1 win on court two, but Penn earned wins in the first and third positions to take the early lead.
Stanford responded in singles with four first sets, with three of those matches ended in straight set victories for the Cardinal. The score jumped to 3-1 in an instant, with Jagger Leach, Samir Banerjee and Nico Godsick all finishing matches in quick succession. Leach finished off a 6-4, 6-3 win on court five for his 16th win of the season, including an 8-0 mark at No. 5 singles, while Banerjee won his second consecutive battle at No. 2 singles, 6-4, 6-1. Godsick posted his 11th win at No. 3 singles, 6-2, 6-3.
Three matches went to a third set, and Hudson Rivera provided the clinching point on court four after rallying for a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 triumph on court four. The win marked the third clincher of the season for Rivera and his 14th victory of the season.
Stanford improves to 20-2 all-time against Ivy League foes while defeating Penn in the first matchup in the series.
The Cardinal continues the NCAA Championship on Sunday, May 3 at 8 a.m. PT against No. 10 and 11th-seeded Texas A&M.
No. 18 Stanford 4, No. 43 Penn 1
DOUBLES
1) No. 37 Graziani/Sandler (PENN) d. No. 22 Chang/Razeghi (STAN), 6-2
2) Godsick/Rivera (STAN) d. Chung/Vales (PENN), 6-1
3) Bharadwaj/Spurling (PENN) d. Banerjee/Leach (STAN), 7-6 (4)
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3
SINGLES
1) No. 57 Alex Razeghi (STAN) vs. No. 39 Manfredi Graziani (PENN), 7-5, 5-7, 2-2 uf
2) Samir Banerjee (STAN) d. Shaurya Bharadwaj (PENN), 6-4, 6-1
3) Nico Godsick (STAN) d. Luka Butera (PENN), 6-2, 6-3
4) No. 81 Hudson Rivera (STAN) d. Justin Chung (PENN), 4-6, 6-4, 6-3
5) Jagger Leach (STAN) d. Vojtech Vales (PENN), 6-4, 6-3
6) Alex Chang (STAN) vs. Matthew Rutter (PENN), 4-6, 6-4, 3-3 uf
Order of Finish: 5, 2, 3, 4