Liberty University
Washington
Liberty Closes Out ITA Kickoff Weekend With 4-2 Loss to Washington
1/28/2023 5:44:19 PM | Men's Tennis
The No. 4 seed Liberty Flames ended ITA Kickoff Weekend with a 4-2 loss to the No. 3-seeded Washington Huskies in the consolation match, Saturday afternoon at the Boone Tennis Center.
Liberty falls to 2-3 on the year and was 0-2 at ITA Kickoff Weekend, an event featuring the best teams in the country. Washington improves to 3-1 on the year and finishes the weekend with a 1-1 mark.
The Flames dropped two doubles matches, with both losses coming via tiebreak. Liberty got two singles points by wins from No. 1 Josh Wilson and No. 4 Christiaan Worst, who together also won their doubles match in the No. 1 position.
This was the third straight year that Liberty has been invited to play in the ITA Kickoff Weekend. The team lost to No. 1 seed and No. 5 Kentucky (5-0) in the first round on Friday. Kentucky and Notre Dame (5-1) are meeting in the championship match, with a spot in the 2023 ITA Division I National’s Men’s Team Indoor Championship on the line.
Thoughts From Head Coach Derek Schwandt
“Our team mission statement is to every day be humble, hungry, selfless and prepared to give our best with a purpose. The whole team did a great job of this today and represented what we are about. We will bounce back from today and respond.”
Washington 4, Liberty 2
Singles Competition
- Josh Wilson (LIBERTYM) def. Han-Chih Lin (UW) 6-2, 6-2
- Dzianis Zharyn (UW) def. Beau Pelletier (LIBERTYM) 7-5, 6-2
- Cesar Bouchelaghem (UW) def. Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) 6-1, 6-4
- Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) def. Nedim Suko (UW) 6-2, 6-2
- Jim Hendrikx (UW) def. Luis Felipe Miguel (LIBERTYM) 6-3, 6-4
- Brett Pearson (UW) vs. Zion Heaven (LIBERTYM) 4-6, 3-5, unfinished
Doubles Competition
- Josh Wilson/Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) def. Cesar Bouchelaghem/Dzianis Zharyn (UW) 7-5
- Brett Pearson/Nedim Suko (UW) def. Zion Heaven/Beau Pelletier (LIBERTYM) 7-6 (7-2)
- Jim Hendrikx/Han-Chih Lin (UW) def. Luis Felipe Miguel/Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) 7-6 (8-6)
Liberty 2-3
Washington 3-1
Order of Finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (1,4,3,2,5)
T-3:55
How It Happened
• Liberty’s No. 1 doubles pairing of Josh Wilson and Christiaan Worst won their doubles match against Washington’s Cesar Bouchelaghem and Dzianis Zharyn by a 7-5 score. Wilson and Worst lead Flames doubles pairings in spring doubles triumphs (2) as well as overall doubles victories (12) between fall and spring competition.
• The first point of the match for Liberty came from No. 1 Josh Wilson, who bested Washington’s top player Han-Chih Lin in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2.
• The Flames’ No. 4 singles player Christiaan Worst topped the Huskies’ Nedim Suko by a score of 6-2, 6-2. The win by Worst was his third career singles win at ITA Kickoff Weekend, leading the team. His victory put Liberty ahead 2-1.
• The match clinching point for the Huskies came from No. 5 Jim Hendrix, who knocked off the Flames’ Luis Felipe Miguel 6-3, 6-4.
• Liberty’s No. 6 player Zion Heaven had his match go unfinished at deuce in a game that could have won him the match. Heaven was leading his counterpart, Washington’s Brett Pearson, 6-4, 5-3.
• The Flames are still looking for their first win at ITA Kickoff Weekend. Liberty is 0-6 all-time at the event over the last three seasons.
• Washington is 2-0 all-time versus Liberty. The Huskies edged the 4-3 in 2019 on their home courts
Next Up
• Liberty (2-3) will be back on the road next weekend, as the Flames will take on William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va. on Saturday at 1 p.m.
• The Flames have faced William & Mary 12 times in program history and have a 5-7 record against the team. The two last faced off in 2022, with Liberty getting the 7-0 sweep at home. The Flames have defeated the Tribe in five straight meetings.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,2,3
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
1,4,3,2,5