FORT WORTH, Texas -- The 29th-ranked Cornell men's tennis team saw its season come to a close with a 4-0 loss to No. 2 TCU on Saturday afternoon in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center. The Big Red finished the year at 19-4, while TCU improved to 23-5 and advances to the NCAA regional semifinals next weekend.
Cornell was edged in a tightly contested doubles point that proved pivotal. After falling at No. 1 doubles, the Big Red responded behind the pairing of freshman Rethin Pranav Senthil Kumar and sophomore Rushil Khosla, who earned a 6-4 victory over TCU's No. 42-ranked tandem at the No. 2 position. The point came down to court three, where junior Felipe Pinzon and senior Petar Teodorovic battled before dropping a 7-5 decision, giving the Horned Frogs a 1-0 lead.
In singles play, TCU secured straight-set wins at Nos. 5, 6 and 4 to clinch the match, but the scoreline belied several competitive efforts from the Big Red across the remaining courts.
At the top spot, Rodrigo Fernandes pushed No. 8 Duncan Chan in the opening set before holding a second-set lead prior to the match's conclusion. At No. 3, Petar Teodorovic took the opening set and led in the second against Cooper Woestendick, ranked No. 55 nationally..
Despite the result, Cornell capped one of the most successful seasons in program history, highlighted by an Ivy League championship, a 14-1 stretch to close the regular season, a first round NCAA victory for the fourth straight year and double-digit wins over ranked opponents.
