Jan. 25, 2001
The 33rd-ranked Notre Dame men’s tennis team dropped its first dual match of the season as 27th-ranked Indiana edged the Irish 4-3 on Thursday at the Eck Tennis Pavilion. The Hoosiers led 3-1 in the match, but Notre Dame used wins at Nos. 6 and 1 singles to tie match. Indiana then won the deciding match at No. 5 singles for the victory. The Irish fall to 2-1 with the loss and return to action at 32nd-ranked Ohio State on Saturday.
Notre Dame began the day with an 8-4 win at No. 2 doubles but then lost a pair of tiebreakers in the other two doubles matches, as Indiana led 1-0 after doubles. Irish junior Aaron Talarico quickly knotted the match with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Rahman Smiley at No. 4 singles. Ian Arons put the Hoosiers ahead 2-1 with a 6-3, 6-3 win over 75th-ranked Javier Taborga at No. 2 singles. Indiana build a 3-1 advantage when Paul Jacobson held on for a 6-1, 2-6, 6-4 win over Irish freshman Luis Haddock-Morales at No. 3 singles.
Sophomore Brian Farrell used a break of serve at 5-4 in the second set and then won five straight games in the third set as he pulled Notre Dame within 3-2 with a 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Bernard Tsepelman at No. 6 singles. Irish junior and 95th-ranked Casey Smith improved to 3-0 at No. 1 singles this season by holding off Milan Rakvica 7-5, 4-6, 6-2 to tie the match at 3-3. Indiana’s Zach Held won the decisive match with a 6-7 (8-6), 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) win over freshman Matthew Scott.
#27 INDIANA 4, #33 NOTRE DAME 3
Doubles
No. 1: Ricardo Jordan/Rahman Smiley (I) def. #38 Javier Taborga/Aaron Talarico (ND) 9-8 (12-10)
No. 2: Luis Haddock-Morales/Casey Smith (ND) def. Ian Arons/Milan Rakvica (I) 8-4
No. 3: Zach Held/Paul Jacobson (I) def. Brian Farrell/Andrew Laflin (ND) 9-8 (7-5)
Singles
No. 1: #95 Smith (ND) def. #53 Rakvica (I) 7-5, 4-6, 6-2
No. 2: Arons (I) def. #75 Taborga (ND) 6-3, 6-3
No. 3: Jacobson (I) def. Haddock-Morales (ND) 6-1, 2-6, 6-4
No. 4: Talarico (ND) def. Smiley (I) 6-1, 6-1
No. 5: Held (I) def. Matthew Scott (ND) 6-7 (8-6), 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
No. 6: Farrell (ND) def. Bernard Tsepelman (I) 5-7, 6-4, 6-1