USC Men’s Tennis Pushes No. 2 TCU to its Max in the 4-3 Loss

Men’s Tennis | March 15, 2024

LOS ANGELES – USC men’s tennis (5-8) dropped a heartbreaker, as it all came down to the last court before No. 2 TCU (13-1) bested the Trojans 4-3 on Friday, Mar. 15 at Marks Tennis Stadium.
 
Throughout the match, USC had the Horned Frogs on the ropes, but it was a last-ditch comeback on court No. 6 that upended the upset bid. The Trojans split the singles side of things, as the doubles point was the deciding factor in this one. 
 
USC dropped both doubles matches, but had its shot to make an impact, as the doubles pair of Peter Makk/Lodewijk Weststrate led for majority of the match, as they went up 4-1 on the #2 pairing in the country. However, a quick opening led to the come-from-behind victory for the TCU pairing, as they clinched the doubles point.
 
Singles started similar to doubles, as every player except #102 Weststrate dropped the first set. The senior went into tiebreak and came out of it with a 7-6(5) first set victory, which led him to completing the first singles match, getting the upset victory over the #53 player in the country and evening the score at one a piece. USC would alternate scores as they lost the match at the No. 1 spot, but graduate student Samuel Rubell rallied to push a third set and win at the No. 5 spot. Freshman Volodymyr Iakubenko would make his debut at the No. 2 spot and best his highest-ranking opponent, as he secured a 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory over the #35 player. The Trojans would lose out on the rest, but not without making it close before falling 4-3.
 
USC returns to action at 1 p.m. on Sunday, as it faces No. 9 Texas at Marks Tennis Stadium. 
 
#2 TCU 4, USC 3
Friday, March 15
Marks Tennis Stadium | Los Angeles, Calif. 
 
DOUBLES
1.     #2 Sebastian Gorzny/Pedro Vives (TCU) def. Peter Makk/Lodewijk Weststrate (USC) 6-4
2.     #40 Duncan Chan/Lui Maxted (TCU) def. Samuel Rubell/Niroop Vallabhaneni (USC) 6-3
3.     Volodymyr Iakubenko/Karl Lee (USC) vs. Jake Pinnington/Tomas Jirousek (TCU) 5-4 UNF
 
TCU wins doubles point. 
Order of finish: 2, 1
 
SINGLES
1.     #10 Jack Pinnington (TCU) def. #50 Peter Makk (USC) 6-1, 7-5
2.     Volodymyr Iakubenko (USC) def. #35 Pedro Vives (TCU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-1
3.     #102 Lodewijk Weststrate (USC) def. #53 Sebastian Gorzny (TCU) 7-6(5),…