The Texas Tech men’s tennis team picked up a pair of victories over Princeton and No. 50 Alabama to secure a fifth place finish Saturday at the Blue Gray Classic.

The Red Raiders (6-7) faced off against Alabama (6-6) three weeks earlier, and the Crimson Tide took a close 4-3 decision. Roles reversed Saturday when Texas Tech picked up a 4-1 upset at a neutral site.

“First off, great team effort today to get two big wins,” Texas Tech head coach Brett Masi said. “We showed fight, the Texas Tech spirit today and it paid off after losing a really tough match yesterday. We got up on Princeton early and didn’t let them breathe. Jolan and Connor did a great job of starting us off, and Alex delivered the knockout blow to finish them off. We wanted revenge and got it against Alabama. It was a tough loss the last time we faced them. Having Connor back in the lineup was a big help, but our whole team factored in the win. Big wins from Jolan and Carlos in doubles to give us the early lead. Overall, awesome weekend for Bjorn, Connor and Alex who went undefeated in singles. That’s the type of big time performances we need to be successful.”

The Red Raiders breezed through doubles action and collected a pair of wins in the top two spots of the lineup.

Connor Curry and Bjorn Thomson dropped two games early on but quickly finished off Spencer Richey and Mazen Osama with five straight games of their own for a final tally of 6-2.

Jolan Cailleau and Carlos DiLaura only gave up a single game en route to a convincing 6-1 triumph to give Texas Tech the 1-0 edge.

Jackson Cobb and Alex Sendegeya were on the comeback trail from a three-game deficit against Alabama’s Hayes Brewer and Ritchie Krunnenberg and trailed 5-4 when play was stopped.

The middle of the lineup did the heavy lifting for the Red Raiders to capture the 4-1 victory. Curry paved the way and served up a straight-set 6-0, 6-4 victory against Thibault Cancel at the No. 2 position.

Alabama’s sole victory came from the No. 6 position and trimmed the Texas Tech advantage down to 2-1. Alexey Nesterov notched a 6-4, 6-1 decision over Cobb.

Sendegeya overpowered Richey by a 6-3, 6-3 margin on court four. This marks Sendegeya’s fourth win in his last five matches when he plays at the No. 4 slot. 

Thomson showed resilience and walked away with a 7-6 (5), 6-2 win over Ortiz on the No. 3 singles line to tie a bow on Texas Tech’s 4-1 victory.

Alabama’s Zhe Zhou held a 7-5, 5-2 advantage over DiLaura on court five, while No. 54 Cailleau and No. 62 Osama were locked in second-set tiebreak at the top of the lineup. Cailleau claimed a 6-1 win during the opening set. 

The Red Raiders started the day with a 1-0 lead over Princeton after winning the doubles point on Friday evening after a tough 4-3 loss to No. 16 South Carolina.

Curry started the day and pushed the Texas Tech lead to 2-0 with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Thomas Colautti on court two. Cailleau skated past Alexander Day with a 6-2, 6-4 win on the No. 1 singles lead to give the Red Raiders a 3-0 advantage.

Sendegeya wrapped up the 4-0 sweep of Princeton and garnered a routine 6-0, 6-3 decision over Luke Gamle at the No. 4 spot.

The Red Raiders travel to No. 19 Illinois and Northwestern next weekend. First serve for Friday’s matchup with the Fighting Illini is set for 1 p.m. CT from the Atkins Tennis Center.

Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the Texas Tech men’s tennis program. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.facebook.com/Techmenstennis and @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.

Texas Tech 4, No. 50 Alabama 1

February 25, 2017 – O’Connor (Montgomery, Ala.)

Singles

1 – No. 54 Jolan Cailleau (TTU) vs. No. 62 Mazen Osama (BAMA): 1-6, 6-6 (0-0), unfinished

2 – Connor Curry (TTU) defeats Thibault Cancel (BAMA): 6-0, 6-4

3 – Bjorn Thomson (TTU) defeats Edson Ortiz (BAMA): 7-6 (5), 6-2

4 – Alex Sendegeya (TTU) defeats Spencer Richey (BAMA): 6-4, 6-3

5 – Carlos DiLaura (TTU) vs. Zhe Zhou (BAMA): 5-7, 2-5, unfinished

6 – Alexey Nesterov (BAMA) defeats Jackson Cobb (TTU): 6-4, 6-1

Order of finish: 2, 6, 4, 3

Doubles

1 – Connor Curry/Bjorn Thomson (TTU) defeats Spencer Richey/Mazen Osama (BAMA): 6-2

2 –Carlos DiLauraJolan Cailleau (TTU) defeats Edson Ortiz/Alexey Nesterov (BAMA): 6-1

3 – Jackson Cobb/Alex Sendegeya (TTU) defeats Hayes Brewer/Ritchie Kruunenberg (BAMA):

4-5, unfinished

Order of finish: 1, 2

Alabama (6-6); National Ranking: No. 50

Texas Tech (6-7)

Texas Tech 4, Princeton 0

February 25, 2017 – Lagoon Park (Montgomery, Ala.)

Singles

1 – No. 54 Jolan Cailleau (TTU) defeats Alexander Day (PRIN): 6-2, 6-4

2 – Connor Curry (TTU) defeats. Thomas Colautti (PRIN): 6-2, 6-2

3 – Bjorn Thomson (TTU) vs. Kial Kaiser (PRIN): 6-7 (4), 6-1, unfinished

4 – Alex Sendegeya (TTU) defeats Luke Gamble (PRIN): 6-0, 6-3

5 – Carlos DiLaura (TTU) vs. Jimmy Wasserman (PRIN): 7-6 (3), 0-0, unfinished

6 – Jackson Cobb (TTU) vs. Payton Holden (PRIN): no result

Order of finish 2, 1, 4

Doubles

1 – Connor Curry/Bjorn Thomson (TTU) defeats No. 13 Alexander Day/Luke Gamble (PRIN): 6-2

2 –Carlos DiLaura/Jolan Cailleau (TTU) vs. Thomas Colautti/Payton Holden (PRIN): 3-4, unfinished

3 – Jackson Cobb/Alex Sendegeya (TTU) defeats Kial Kaiser/Jimmy Wasserman (PRIN): 6-0

Order of finish 3, 1

Princeton (4-6)

Texas Tech (5-7)