SAN ANTONIO – No. 11 Trinity University Men's Tennis powered its way past No. 6 University of Chicago—the 2022 NCAA III Champion—Thursday evening with a 6-3 output at the
Butch Newman Tennis Center.
The Tigers (7-3) took a 2-1 advantage out of doubles but were tied 3-3 with the Maroons (8-3) midway through singles. Junior
Rob Chang (Aeia, Hawaii / 'Iolani School) rallied from a late second-set deficit in line five for a 6-4, 6-4 output to set the stage for sophomore
Eric Liao's (Taipei, Taiwan / Boca Prep [FL]) third-set resurgence to clinch the match on a 6-4 tally.
The doubles advantage carried weight early on in singles, an advantage muscled in from the third line by senior
Cal Hunter (Lafayette, Calif. / Campolindo) and first-year
Conor Kaczmarczyk (Aurora, Colo. / Regis Jesuit). The duo rallied from a two-game deficit early en route to a 7-3 tiebreak tally. Liao and senior
Hao Nguyen (Sugar Land, Texas / Strake Jesuit) put Trinity on the board, 8-6, after the Tigers ceded the second line, 8-2.
Nguyen retained his court one responsibility for singles action and seized momentum immediately with a 6-1, 6-1 performance over the nation's No. 22 player in Derek Hsieh that put Trinity up 3-1, though Chicago answered with straight-sets victories in the second and sixth.
Now knotted up at three all, the Tigers still faced a climb as Liao and Chang were each trailing in their second set though the pair, and first-year
Rafa Candelas Ruiz (Zacatecas, Mexico / American [ESP]), all had a first-set decision in hand.
Chang overcame his trailing position to add Trinity's fourth point as he came back with a 4-1 run in his second set. Meanwhile, the swift play on court three left Liao partway into his third frame, up 4-3, and Candelas had fallen behind, 6-5, in his second which would later fall 7-5.
Liao finished it off, 6-4, as both teams spectated from court one. Candelas then returned to play his abbreviated superbreaker set and double-up the Maroons on a 10-3 margin.
No. 11 Trinity Men's Tennis will trek to NCAA I University of the Incarnate Word Saturday for an 11:00 a.m. first serve.
