TUCSON, Ariz. – Sun Devil men's tennis posted their second top-25 upset of the season today, this time powering past the No. 25 Arizona Wildcats, 4-2, on Saturday afternoon in Tucson. The squad is now 2-0 against the Wildcats since reinstatement in 2018 and 3-0 in their last three matchups dating back to 2008.
"It was a really fun match to be a part of and it was a huge win for us," coach Matt Hill said. "We've had a lot of adversity on and off the court, so this was a huge confidence boost for us."
The Sun Devils (8-10) secured their 12th doubles point of the season through their first 18 matches, already outnumbering their 2018 total with seven more regular season matches currently scheduled.
Arizona took the doubles advantage with a 6-2 win on court two, but the Sun Devils rebounded with back-to-back wins on courts one and three. No. 56 Andrea Bolla/Tim Ruehl finished up first, taking a 6-4 victory in the three spot. No. 18 Nathan Ponwith/Dominik Kellovsky followed soon after, heading into a tiebreaker after battling to 6-all late.
Going down 3-6 in the tiebreak set, the tandem kicked things into overdrive to take the break, 10-8.
Heading into singles play with a 1-0 lead, the Wildcats took two-straight wins on courts five and six to pull out to a 2-1 lead. Benjamin Hannestad stayed extremely competitive in his first set, battling to a tiebreak after tying it at 6-all. Although he lost the first set 7-6 and then his second at 6-1, Hannestad has been making strides in coming back from a recurring injury after playing in three of the Sun Devils' last five matches.
"It was good to see Benjamin back in the lineup because he's been dealing with a lot of physical injuries this year," Hill said. "He's putting a lot of work in on and off the court. While he didn't get his point today, it was good to see him out there competing injury-free and getting back to his tennis."
Down but not out, the Sun Devils needed just three singles wins to clinch the match. Ruehl glided past his opponent in straight-sets 6-4, 6-4, for the equalizer at two apiece.
"He's a consistent performer for us because we know what we're going to get from him," Hill said. "Applying pressure back on the opponent is always great when the other courts were scraping out third sets."
Kellovsky launched a comeback win to give the Sun Devils a lead and huge momentum, dropping his first set 3-6. The Czech-native came out firing in set two, taking it 6-2 to force a match-deciding third set. Going down 1-0 early, Kellovsky fought to 5-4 late and used a between-the-legs shot to take the victory 3-6, 6-2, 6-4.
"That was a huge point for us because it really was the swing point that took some pressure off JR there," Hill said. "I thought mentally Dom did a fantastic job in the second and third of being calm, composed, doing his thing and playing his game."
The match came down to No. 55 Nathan Ponwith and Justin Roberts with both playing from an advantage in their third sets. Roberts came through for the Sun Devils for his sixth-straight win, charging to a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 victory to clinch the Territorial Cup Series point for the second straight season.
"I thought he did an incredible job because his opponent was a tough guy to play who has great serves," Hill said. "To see him rebound, refocus and get back on track was huge. He did an unbelievable job today."
The Sun Devils are back in action in just three days, taking on Delaware in a midweek matchup. ASU will play three more games next weekend: one on Friday against Oregon and two on Sunday against Washington and Grand Canyon. Fans can keep up with the action all season-long by following @SunDevilMTennis on Twitter.
"It was a really fun match to be a part of and it was a huge win for us," coach Matt Hill said. "We've had a lot of adversity on and off the court, so this was a huge confidence boost for us."
The Sun Devils (8-10) secured their 12th doubles point of the season through their first 18 matches, already outnumbering their 2018 total with seven more regular season matches currently scheduled.
Arizona took the doubles advantage with a 6-2 win on court two, but the Sun Devils rebounded with back-to-back wins on courts one and three. No. 56 Andrea Bolla/Tim Ruehl finished up first, taking a 6-4 victory in the three spot. No. 18 Nathan Ponwith/Dominik Kellovsky followed soon after, heading into a tiebreaker after battling to 6-all late.
Going down 3-6 in the tiebreak set, the tandem kicked things into overdrive to take the break, 10-8.
Heading into singles play with a 1-0 lead, the Wildcats took two-straight wins on courts five and six to pull out to a 2-1 lead. Benjamin Hannestad stayed extremely competitive in his first set, battling to a tiebreak after tying it at 6-all. Although he lost the first set 7-6 and then his second at 6-1, Hannestad has been making strides in coming back from a recurring injury after playing in three of the Sun Devils' last five matches.
"It was good to see Benjamin back in the lineup because he's been dealing with a lot of physical injuries this year," Hill said. "He's putting a lot of work in on and off the court. While he didn't get his point today, it was good to see him out there competing injury-free and getting back to his tennis."
Down but not out, the Sun Devils needed just three singles wins to clinch the match. Ruehl glided past his opponent in straight-sets 6-4, 6-4, for the equalizer at two apiece.
"He's a consistent performer for us because we know what we're going to get from him," Hill said. "Applying pressure back on the opponent is always great when the other courts were scraping out third sets."
Kellovsky launched a comeback win to give the Sun Devils a lead and huge momentum, dropping his first set 3-6. The Czech-native came out firing in set two, taking it 6-2 to force a match-deciding third set. Going down 1-0 early, Kellovsky fought to 5-4 late and used a between-the-legs shot to take the victory 3-6, 6-2, 6-4.
"That was a huge point for us because it really was the swing point that took some pressure off JR there," Hill said. "I thought mentally Dom did a fantastic job in the second and third of being calm, composed, doing his thing and playing his game."
The match came down to No. 55 Nathan Ponwith and Justin Roberts with both playing from an advantage in their third sets. Roberts came through for the Sun Devils for his sixth-straight win, charging to a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 victory to clinch the Territorial Cup Series point for the second straight season.
"I thought he did an incredible job because his opponent was a tough guy to play who has great serves," Hill said. "To see him rebound, refocus and get back on track was huge. He did an unbelievable job today."
The Sun Devils are back in action in just three days, taking on Delaware in a midweek matchup. ASU will play three more games next weekend: one on Friday against Oregon and two on Sunday against Washington and Grand Canyon. Fans can keep up with the action all season-long by following @SunDevilMTennis on Twitter.