April 27, 2017
Box Score 
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By Joanne Norell
ROME, Ga.. — The 10th-seeded University of Notre Dame men’s tennis team battled to the last match against seventh-seeded Louisville on Thursday in the second round of the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship, but ultimately came out on the wrong end of a back-and-forth contest that saw the Cardinals win 4-3 at the Rome Tennis Center.
How It Happened
The doubles point went to the Cardinals (21-8) as Louisville won 6-2 decisions on Courts 1 and 3. Louisville’s 33rd-ranked doubles pair of Parker Wynn and Sean Donohue first defeated No. 32 Eddy Covalschi and Josh Hagar on Court 1. Then Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff and George Hedley defeated Matt Gamble and Alex Lebedev on Court 3 to wrap up the point.
The match came down to the back-and-forth battle that was singles. The Irish (13-13), who won the first set on just two singles courts, tied the match when freshman Guillermo Cabrera defeated Hedley in a quick 6-2, 6-1 match at No 4. The Cardinals regained the lead, however, when Wynn defeated Lebedev 6-4, 6-1 on Court 2.
Covalschi pulled the Irish back even with his 6-4, 6-2 victory over Nicolas Rouanet at No. 3 singles, and the Irish threatened in the remaining three matches by forces third sets in each.
Gamble looked poised to give the Irish the lead, taking a 5-1 lead in the third set against Brandon Lancaster on Court 5. His Cardinal foe answered emphatically, though, coming back to win 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 to regain the lead for Louisville.
But Notre Dame tied it again on Court 6 as sophomore Grayson Broadus converted a 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 comeback win over Clement Filho.
Hagar battled in a three-set match on Court 1 with Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff in the final match. After falling in a first-set tiebreaker 7-6(10-8), the senior was impressive in the second to win 6-3 and force a third. He couldn’t hold on, however, and fell 7-6(8), 3-6, 6-3 in what turned into the deciding match.
Up Next
The Irish will learn their NCAA Championship fate on Tuesday, May 2, during the NCAA Selection Show at 5 p.m. ET on NCAA.com.
Scoreboard
No. 43 Louisville 4, No. 44 Notre Dame 3
April 27, 2017
Rome Tennis Center
Rome, Ga.
Singles
1. Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff (UL) def. No. 48 Josh Hagar (ND) 7-6(8), 3-6, 6-3
2. Parker Wynn (UL) def. Alex Lebedev (ND) 6-4, 6-1
3. Eddy Covalschi (ND) def. Nicolas Rouanet (UL) 6-4, 6-2
4. Guillermo Cabrera (ND) def. George Hedley (UL) 6-2, 6-1
5. Brandon Lancaster (UL) def. Matt Gamble (ND) 6-2, 5-7, 7-5
6. Grayson Broadus (ND) def. Clement Filho (UL) 6-3, 6-2, 6-4
Doubles
1. No. 33 Parker Wynn / Sean Donohue (UL) def. No. 32 Eddy Covalschi / Josh Hagar (ND) 6-2
2. Grayson Broadus / Brendon Kempin (ND) vs. Nicolas Rouanet / Ciro Lampasas (UL) 5-2, unfinished
3. Christopher Morin-Kougoucheff / George Hedley (UL) def. Matt Gamble / Alex Lebedev (ND) 6-2
— ND —
Joanne Norell, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since 2014 and coordinates communications efforts for the Notre Dame women’s soccer, men’s tennis, women’s tennis and fencing programs. Norell is a 2011 graduate of Purdue University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communication, and earned her master’s degree in sports industry management from Georgetown University in 2013.