University of North Florida
NCAA Single & Doubles Championship
Zuern, Findel-Hawkins Drop Opening Round Match of NCAA Championship
5/26/2016 6:02:00 PM | Men's Tennis
The 12th-ranked duo of Hugo Dojas and Felipe Soares (Texas Tech) had a comeback victory against the No. 34 duo from UNF, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 1-0 (7).
"I am really proud of Jack and Yannick's performance at the NCAA Championship," said head coach Mark Finnegan. "They came really close to beating two really great players. Being a set and a break up and losing a really tight one against the defending national champions. It is never fun to lose those ones, but they represented themselves very well and I know they are going to learn something about themselves so they can come back next year and take their opportunities a little bit better."Â
After splitting the first two sets, Findel-Hawkins and Zuern went up 4-1 in the winner-take-all super tiebreaker. The Red Raiders then dug deep and ripped off seven consecutive points to grab an 8-4 advantage.
Findel-Hawkins and Zuern pieced together three straight points to pull back within 8-7. However, Soares tallied back-to-back points to stave off a comeback from the Ospreys.Â
The opening set featured zero service breaks and was decided in a tiebreaker. UNF made the most of a volley error on the breaker's second point and held on for the 7-6 (5)Â decision.
Findel-Hawkins and Zuern went ahead in the second set as well, 3-2, but Dojas and Soares found their rhythm with four straight games to even the match.Â
"Overall, it was a great season for UNF tennis. Not many schools can say that they were represented in all three NCAA Championships - singles, doubles and team," added Finnegan. "I am really proud of our whole team and the community of UNF and we are excited to bring the program to new heights next year."
The defeat officially closes out the 2016 season where UNF won its first-ever Atlantic Sun Tournament Championship. The Ospreys lose just one senior from its line up and adds Dominic Lea.
Players Mentioned
