MONTGOMERY, Ala. – For the first time since 1984, No. 36 Auburn men's tennis has been crowned the champion of the 75th annual Blue-Gray National Tennis Classic in Montgomery by winning all three matches over ranked opponents in the prestigious bracket-style tournament.
The Tigers defeated three ranked opponents on the way to the championship. Auburn took down No. 44 Texas Tech in the first round, No. 25 Middle Tennessee in the semifinal round, and No. 14 Arizona in the championship match.
"This championship is a long time coming," Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said after being awarded the championship trophy. "There have been a lot of heart aches for us here over the years but this year makes it all worth it. We have a great group of guys who battle for each other. They understand the individual is not as important as the team coming together and who can dig the deepest. No matter what the obstacle is, it's always the next guy up. That was an amazing Arizona team that we played, and that will be great preparation for the SEC season just in front of us."
Senior Finn Murgett was named tournament MVP after the final match for his impressive weekend in which he went a perfect 3-0 in singles play and both doubles play. Additionally, senior Jan Galka was awarded the tournament's sportsmanship award.
"I think we hit our stride the last few days," said Murgett. "Playing in front of an Auburn crowd, it's very easy to compete with everyone cheering for us. We are learning that it's the team that must be successful and everyone can contribute. I'm starting to understand that my college career is coming to an end, and I want to make the most of it and compete as hard as I can."
After a slight delay due to rain on Friday, Auburn and Texas Tech began with singles which was all the Tigers needed to claim a first round victory. Murgett and Tyler Stice each won their matches in two sets to give the Tigers an early 2-0 advantage. Then Dobai won a close third set to claim the point on court six and freshman Alejandro Moreno came back from dropping his first set to win on court two and clinch the match for Auburn by a 4-1 score.
Auburn then played the doubles portion of the match against their next opponent, No. 25 Middle Tennessee, on Friday evening. Stice and Moreno won their match on court three to give Auburn the advantage, then the doubles team of Dobai and Murgett, the 46th ranked doubles team in the nation, upset No. 44 Francisco Rocha and Oskar Brostrom Poulsen in a close 7-6 victory to claim the doubles point for the Tigers.
Auburn spent the night with a 1-0 lead on the Blue Raiders before returning to the Lagoon Park Tennis Facility for the singles portion of the match on Saturday.
Once again, Murgett was the first to claim victory in two sets on court four. Shortly after Murgett's win, Stice defeated No. 69 Stijn Slump in two sets by a 6-1, 7-5 score to put the Tigers one point away from victory. After taking the first set in a tiebreaker, Galka claimed his second set 6-0 over Marcel Kamrowski to give Auburn the shutout semifinal win by a 4-0 score.
The semifinal victory set up a primetime championship match with No. 14 Arizona. The Wildcats had defeated Nebraska and No. 41 Oklahoma earlier in the tournament to punch their ticket to the finals.
Murgett and Dobai got Auburn off to a hot start on the doubles court, as they defeated Jonas Ziverts and Jay Friend on court one 6-2. Galka and Billy Blaydes then won their match on court two 6-4 to claim the doubles point.
For the third time in as many matches, Murgett was the first to finish with a resounding 6-1, 6-1 victory on court four. The Wildcats then claimed victories on courts one and three to tie the match at two.
Blaydes then came through with a crucial match win by taking the third set on court six to help Auburn re-claim the lead 3-2. Needing just one more match win to claim the championship, Galka came back after dropping his first set to defeat Herman Hoeyeraal on court five by a 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 score.
The three wins in Montgomery pushes Auburn's winning streak up to seven and improved its record to 10-2. The Tigers will try to carry the momentum from the championship victory into conference play, as No. 12 Tennessee will be on the Plains to open the SEC schedule on Thursday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. CT at the Yarbrough Tennis Center (1717 Richland Road, Auburn). Admission is free.
"We'll enjoy this at least until Thursday, when Tennessee comes to town to open the SEC season," said Coach Reynolds.
#36 Auburn 4, #44 Texas Tech 1
Singles results:
1. #103 Tyler Stice (AUB) def. Olle Wallin (TTU) 6-2, 6-4
2. Alejandro Moreno (AUB) def. Franco Ribero (TTU) 5-7, 6-2, 6-1
3. Will Nolan (AUB) vs. Reed Collier (TTU) 6-2, 6-3, 5-6, unfinished
4. Finn Murgett (AUB) def. Dimitrios Azoidis (TTU) 6-2, 6-1
5. Tyler Stewart (TTU) def. Jan Galka (AUB) 7-5, 6-2
6. Raul Dobai (AUB) def. Lorenzo Esquici (TTU) 3-6, 6-4, 7-6
Order of finish: Singles: 4,1,6,2,5
#36 Auburn 4, #25 Middle Tennessee 0
Doubles results:
1. #46 Raul Dobai/Finn Murgett (AUB) def. #44 Francisco Rocha/Oskar Brostrom Poulsen (MTSU) 7-6
2. Jan Galka/Billy Blaydes (AUB) vs. Stijn Slump/Pavel Motl (MTSU) 6-6, unfinished
3. Tyler Stice/Alejandro Moreno (AUB) def. Shu Matsuoka/Ondrej Horak (MTSU) 6-3
Singles results:
1. #103 Tyler Stice (AUB) def. #69 Stijn Slump (MTSU) 6-1, 7-5
2. Alejandro Moreno (AUB) vs. Francisco Rocha (MTSU) 4-6, 1-2, unfinished
3. Will Nolan (AUB) vs. #98 O. Brostrom Poulsen (MTSU) 5-7, 3-2, unfinished
4. Finn Murgett (AUB) def. Ondrej Horak (MTSU) 6-3, 6-4
5. Jan Galka (AUB) def. Marcel Kamrowski (MTSU) 7-6 (7-3), 6-0
6. Billy Blaydes (AUB) vs. Pavel Motl (MTSU) 2-6, 6-3, 2-1, unfinished
Order of finish: Doubles: 3,1; Singles: 4,1,5
#36 Auburn 4, #14 Arizona 2
Doubles results:
1. #46 Raul Dobai/Finn Murgett (AUB) def. Jonas Ziverts/Jay Friend (ARIZ) 6-2
2. Jan Galka/Billy Blaydes (AUB) def. Colton Smith/Jared Horwood (ARIZ) 6-4
3. Tyler Stice/Alejandro Moreno (AUB) vs. Gustaf Strom/Herman Hoeyeraal (ARIZ) 4-5, unfinished
Singles results:
1. Colton Smith (ARIZ) def. #103 Tyler Stice (AUB) 5-7, 6-2, 6-1
2. Alejandro Moreno (AUB) vs. Jonas Ziverts (ARIZ) 6-3, 4-6, 4-3, unfinished
3. Gustaf Strom (ARIZ) def. Will Nolan (AUB) 6-2, 6-4
4. Finn Murgett (AUB) def. Nick Lagaev (ARIZ) 6-1, 6-1
5. Jan Galka (AUB) def. Herman Hoeyeraal (ARIZ) 5-7, 6-3, 6-4
6. Billy Blaydes (AUB) def. Jay Friend (ARIZ) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
Time of match: 3:20; Order of finish: Doubles 1,2; Singles: 4,3,1,6,5