BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The No. 10 Texas A&M men’s tennis team defeated No. 6 TCU 5-2 Tuesday evening at the Mitchell Tennis Center. The Aggies improved to 12-4 this season while the Horned Frogs fell to 10-5 on the year.
“I just was so pleased with the kind of fight that our guys had tonight and just kind of a refuse to lose kind of mentality,” Texas A&M head coach Steve Denton said. “TCU is a great team and they have been really good the last several years. For us to come out tonight and win the doubles point against them and they are typically very good in doubles, I think gave us a big boost.”
The Aggies opened the match with an overpowering attack on the doubles court, winning handily on court three followed by a two-break victory on court one. A&M’s Pranav Kumar and Noah Schachter raced to a 6-1 triumph over Luc Fomba and Max Kurzban before No. 48 Carlos Aguilar and Bjorn Thomson toppled No. 15 Alastair Gray and Jake Fearnley 6-3 to clinch the opening point.
The relentless attack from the Maroon & White did not let up as play transitioned into singles action as the home team claimed four first sets to maintain scoreboard pressure on the Horned Frogs. Despite the A&M offensive, TCU evened the match at one-all as Tadeas Paroulek bested Thomson 6-4, 6-4 on court five before the Aggies were able to regain the advantage on court three. No. 116 Schachter propelled A&M back in front with a 6-4, 7-6(5) win over Tomas Jirousek on court three.
As play stretched into third sets on the remaining four courts the Aggies pushed their lead out to 3-1 as Pierce Rollins topped No. 113 Sander Jong 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(4) on court four. TCU earned a point from No. 125 Fearnley on court six in three sets over A&M freshman Raphael Perot.
“We hung in there and battled on all these courts,” Denton said. “We won some close matches, there were four three-setters and we won three of them. Obviously that was a difference in the match, but we could not be more proud of the guys about how hard they fought tonight and how badly they wanted to play well here tonight in front of our fans.”
With all attention settled onto the top two court, A&M’s best did not disappoint the home crowd as No. 4 Vacherot and No. 33 Aguilar outlasted their opponents within seconds of each other to make the final score 5-2 in the Aggies’ favor. Vacherot defeated No. 21 Gray 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-2 on the top court quickly followed by Aguilar’s 6-4, 5-7, 7-5 win over No. 47 Fomba.
UP NEXT
The Aggies return to SEC play as they host Auburn and Alabama at the Mitchell Tennis Center this weekend. A&M will take on Auburn Friday at 6 p.m. while first serve against the Crimson Tide is slated for 1 p.m. on Sunday.
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Visit 12thman.com for more information on Texas A&M men’s tennis. Fans can keep up to date with the A&M men’s tennis team on Facebook, Instagram, and on Twitter by following @AggieMTEN.
Tennis Match Results
TCU vs Texas A&M
3/23/2021 at BCS, TX
(Mitchell Tennis Center)
#10 Texas A&M 5, #6 TCU 2
Singles competition
1. #4 Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) def. #21 Alastair Gray (TCU) 7-6 (7-4), 5-7, 6-2
2. #33 Juan Carlos Aguilar (TAMU) def. #47 Luc Fomba (TCU) 6-4, 5-7, 7-5
3. #116 Noah Schachter (TAMU) def. Tomas Jirousek (TCU) 6-4, 7-6 (7-5)
4. Pierce Rollins (TAMU) def. #113 Sander Jong (TCU) 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4)
5. Tadeas Paroulek (TCU) def. Bjorn Thomson (TAMU) 6-4, 6-4
6. #125 Jake Fearnley (TCU) def. Raphael Perot (TAMU) 3-6, 6-4, 7-5
Doubles competition
1. #48 Juan Carlos Aguilar/Bjorn Thomson (TAMU) def. #15 Alastair Gray/Jake Fearnley (TCU) 6-3
2. Valentin Vacherot/Pierce Rollins (TAMU) vs. #24 Tadeas Paroulek/Sander Jong (TCU) 4-5, unfinished
3. Pranav Kumar/Noah Schachter (TAMU) def. Luc Fomba/Max Kurzban (TCU) 6-1
Match Notes:
TCU 10-5; National ranking #6
Texas A&M 12-4; National ranking #10
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (5,3,4,6,1,2)