The Elon Phoenix has secured an automatic bid to the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship.
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The Elon men’s tennis team dethroned five-time reigning conference champion UNCW on April 19 to win its second Coastal Athletic Association crown, defeating the Seahawks 4-1 in the championship match at the Mackesy Tennis Center in Williamsburg, Virginia.
The Phoenix took the doubles point with a pair of tiebreak wins on Courts 1 and 3. Elon then won three singles courts, with victories by Oskar Antinheimo, Jack Curtis and Rafael Ymer to clinch the match. Ymer clinched the title with a three-set victory on Court 2.
The conference title was Elon’s first since 2019, when the Phoenix also took down UNCW. This was Elon’s fifth-straight CAA championship match, all of which were against the Seahawks. With the victory, Elon secures an automatic bid to the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship.
The Rundown
- For the second straight day, Elon made an escape in doubles, coming from a break down at the Nos. 1 and 3 spots to win both courts in tiebreaks.
- The Seahawks took the first doubles match to finish on Court 2, forcing the Phoenix to win the last two courts.
- On Court 1, Veljko Krstic and Nikola Parichkov overcame an early break deficit against Brady Hussey and Alex de Gabriele, getting the match back on serve and eventually into a tiebreak. Elon’s top tandem fell behind 3-0, but rallied to level the score at 3-3 at the change of ends. They took their first lead at 4-3 and never looked back, winning the next three points to take the tiebreak, 7-3.
- The tiebreak win was the second in as many days for Krstic and Parichkov, who clinched the doubles point in yesterday’s semifinal victory against William & Mary by coming through a breaker. It was the pairing’s fourth tiebreak win of its seven triumphs this spring.
- The doubles point came down to Oskar Antinheimo and Nick Fisk on Court 3, who went down a break on two occasions, including a break that allowed UNCW’s team of Jordi Domenech and Tomas Marin to serve for the match at 5-3. However, Antinheimo and Fisk broke serve and then held to level the contest at 5-5. Both teams added another hold to send the contest into a decisive tiebreak.
- Antinheimo and Fisk raced out to a 4-0 lead and led 4-2 at the changeover. Elon again pulled away after the change of ends, winning the next three points to secure the match and a 1-0 lead. It was the first victory of the season for Antinheimo and Fisk in their third appearance together.
- This was the first time the Phoenix won the doubles point against the Seahawks in the CAA title match in any of the last five years.
- Antinheimo put the Phoenix up 2-0 with a 6-2, 7-5 victory on Court 4 against Oscar Baumgartner. Antinheimo cruised through the first set but trailed by an early break in the second. He quickly got the match back on serve and held a 6-5 lead in the frame entering the final game. The senior took a 15-40 advantage in Baumgartner’s service game and won the next point to clinch the match.
- The victory was Antinheimo’s seventh of the spring and his first in four CAA championship match appearances.
- UNCW pulled back within one with a victory at the top singles spot.
- Curtis moved Elon to within a point of the title with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Domenech on Court 3. Curtis led by a break early in the second set but Domenech got the score back to 5-5. Curtis responded, breaking Domenech for a 6-5 lead before serving out the win in the ensuing game. It was the second straight season Curtis has won in singles in the CAA title match. The junior now has six singles wins this spring.
- For the second straight match, Ymer clinched victory for the Phoenix, coming from a set down against de Gabriele to win 3-6, 6-3, 6-1. It extended the junior’s winning streak to nine matches as he has won 16 singles contests on the season. The sophomore improved to 6-1 in deciding sets this season with the victory, with three of those triumphs coming from a set down.
- Parichkov also led 4-1 in a third set when his match was halted on Court 5, with Charles Pilet up a break in his third set at the No. 6 spot.
- Elon has now won two CAA championships, with both coming via wins in the final against UNCW. It is Elon’s first conference title.
Up Next
Elon will make its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2019 and its fourth as a Division I program. The NCAA Selection Show is set for April 27.
Results
Singles
1. Lukas Steffen (UNCW) def. Veljko Krstic (Elon) 7-5, 6-2
2. Rafael Ymer (Elon) def. Alex de Gabriele (UNCW) 3-6, 6-3, 6-1
3. Jack Curtis (Elon) def. Jordi Domenech (UNCW) 6-2, 7-5
4. Oskar Antinheimo (Elon) def. Oscar Baumgartner (UNCW) 6-2, 7-5
5. Nikola Parichkov (Elon) vs. Tomas Marin (UNCW) 6-2, 5-7, 4-1, unfinished
6. Charles Pilet (Elon) vs. Brady Hussey (UNCW) 6-7 (3), 6-4, 1-0, unfinished
Doubles
1. Veljko Krstic/Nikola Parichkov (Elon) def. Brady Hussey/Alex de Gabriele (UNCW) 7-6 (2)
2. Lukas Steffen/William Dean (UNCW) def. Jack Curtis/Rafael Ymer (Elon) 6-1
3. Oskar Antinheimo/Nick Fisk (Elon) def. Jordi Domenech/Tomas Marin (UNCW) 7-6 (2)
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (4,1,3,2)
