PHOENIX, Ariz. (May 2, 2021) – The intensity was as palpable as the Phoenix heat, and the Northern Arizona men's tennis team relished in it. Capitalizing on a momentum-changing doubles point, the Lumberjacks dispatched Idaho State to punch their second consecutive ticket to the NCAA Tournament with a 4-0 Big Sky Championship victory on Sunday.
After waiting 40 years to secure their first trip to the Big Dance, the Lumberjacks made sure to keep any drought to a minimum. Of course, NAU had to endure the COVID-19 shutdown of the 2020 season, but the 'Jacks successfully defended their 2019 conference championship with a convincing performance versus the Bengals.
"The doubles point was the key," said head coach
Maciej Bogusz. "We were down five or six matches points at No. 3 and they hung in tight. (
Chris Steele and
Maciej Ziomber) played tough and showed a lot of heart and that was the momentum. Idaho State beat us in doubles the last time, so we talked about wanting to take advantage of doubles and carry that momentum into singles today."
NAU (8-8) earned the Big Sky Conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Lumberjacks, who will be making their second-ever NCAA Tournament appearance, will learn their first round opponent during Monday's Selection Show airing on NCAA.com at 3:30 p.m. local to Flagstaff.
Facing an Idaho State team they defeated 6-1 in their regular season matchup in Flagstaff on March 26, the Lumberjacks buckled down in doubles when they needed to the most to open the morning's championship match at Phoenix Tennis Center.
The Bengals struck first with a victory at No. 1, but were unable to wrap up the doubles point. Senior
Eban Straker-Meads and junior
Facundo Tumosa kept the 'Jacks alive with a 7-5 victory at No. 2 and put the doubles point in the hands of NAU's third pairing.
On court three, senior
Chris Steele and freshman
Maciej Ziomber found themselves down 5-2, but not out. After battling back to 5-4, the Bengals' pairing of Jaime Castillo-Lopez and Gary Rendek claimed the next game to move within clinching the early advantage. However, Steele and Ziomber rallied to tie it at 6-6 to force a win-by-two scenario.
The Bengals' duo held match points at 7-6 and 8-7 before Steele and Ziomber got to their first match point at 9-8. After Idaho State staved off NAU's first match point, the Lumberjacks' No. 3 pairing prevailed with two straight to rally for an impressive 7-6 (11-9) victory.
With the doubles point in hand, NAU quickly snagged first set victories on four of six courts putting the Lumberjacks in prime position to find the three singles wins needed to go back-to-back at the Big Sky Championship.
Sophomore
Alex Groves put NAU's second team point on the board with a brisk 6-0, 6-1 win at No. 6 over Wikus Robbertse, which preceded the Lumberjacks' title-clinching singles wins in succession.
Just moments after Tumosa's 6-4, 6-4 win over Aleksander Petrovic at No. 2 moved the Lumberjacks to 3-0, Ziomber clinched the championship on court five. Ziomber, who posted his 11th singles win in his last 12 matches, sent the Lumberjacks in a frenzy with his 6-0, 6-3 victory.
"I actually didn't hear Facundo finish, so suddenly Maciej finishes and everybody starts running on the court and that's when I realized that we clinched," Bogusz said. "We were ahead on a lot of courts and were up a set on a few courts. It was just a great atmosphere and I'm really happy for the guys. After going through this year and not being able to play for a championship last year, we defended the title."
Ziomber was the only Lumberjack to win all four of his matches (two doubles and two singles) during NAU's run this weekend at the Big Sky Championship.
Before Ziomber clinched, Straker-Meads was headed to a third set at No. 1, while freshman
Dominik Buzonics was on his way towards forcing a third set at No. 3. Steele was locked into a second set battle on court four.
The Lumberjacks' first match of the NCAA Tournament will be either Friday, May 7 or Saturday, May 8. The first two rounds of the tournament will be played at school sites before the NCAA Tournament is moved to the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla.
Results:
Doubles:
