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Wayne State University Athletics

2
Wayne State WSUM (5-2)
4
Winner Indianapolis UINDY (8-0)
Wayne State WSUM
(5-2)
2
Final
4
Indianapolis UINDY
(8-0)
Winner
ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, FL - MAY 22: Daniel Grey of the Wayne State Warriors hits a forehand against the Barry Buccaneers during the Division II Menâ??s Tennis Championship held at Sanlando Park on May 22, 2022 in Altamonte Springs, Florida. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
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Daniel Grey helped Wayne State earn a point on Saturday with his victory at No. 3 singles.

Match Recap: Men's Tennis | | Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Student Assistant

Men's Tennis Falls in ITA National Indoors, 4-2, to Host Indianapolis

The Warriors will play in the third place match on Sunday.

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- The Wayne State University men's tennis team (5-2 overall) fell in the semifinals of the ITA National Indoor Championship to host Indianapolis (8-0 overall) 4-2 on Saturday evening inside the UIndy Tennis Center. The Warriors were the No. 5 seed and the Greyhounds were the No. 8 seed.

DOUBLES
The Warriors played more cohesive in doubles action in this match as opposed to the first round match against Flagler, but dropped the doubles point.

Cedric Drenth (Sulzbach, Germany) and Daniel Grey (Wiesbaden, Germany) fell to the top-ranked doubles duo in Division II, Tom Zeuch and Edgar Destouet, by a 6-4 score at the No. 1 doubles spot. 

No. 2 doubles claimed a 6-3 victory, as Luke Laws (Sunderland, England) and Dom Spicer (London, England) completed the job over their UIndy opponents. 

The point was decided at No. 3 doubles, where Joe Kelt (Ilkley, West Yorkshire, England) and Denali Kitayama (West Bloomfield Township, Mich.) narrowly lost, 7-5, to give the Greyhounds the point. It was the second time this season Kelt and Kitayama were playing as a pairing.

SINGLES
Singles action was, as expected, fierce between two of the top schools in the nation. Wayne State won two individual matches, while Indianapolis won three to emerge victorious.

Grey continued to roll on Saturday, as he won his seventh consecutive singles match this spring and 10th straight dating back to the fall season. He handled his opponent, Nikolaj Talimaa, by a 6-4, 6-3 decision at No. 3.

Also continuing a hot streak, and earning the other Warrior point, was Kitayama. He moved to 5-0 this spring with a three-set victory (2-6, 6-2, 6-4) against August Ehrnrooth. 

At No. 1, Spicer and Destouet dueled it out in the first set, with Spicer emerging ahead after a 7-6 (5) decision. The redshirt junior was unable, however, to retain momentum, as he fell in the final two sets, 1-6, 0-6, to drop the match.

Drenth and Zeuch played quite competitively at No. 2 singles, but Zeuch nabbed the victory by matching 7-5 scores in straight sets. 

Kelt was defeated at the No. 6 spot by Thomas Mathis, 6-2, 7-5 in straight sets. 

With the match decided, Laws' match went unfinished at No. 4 singles. The match was called in the third set.

FROM COACH MORROW
"Great tennis match. Really proud of the guys, we fought really hard. Indianapolis is a high-level team, especially in doubles, and we fought hard and had good looks. They just played the big moments better than we did in doubles. In singles, we had many close matches that came down to one or two shots here and there. We received UIndy's best shot, and we played well through it. Unfortunately, tonight they were a little better than us, but we'll use this to be better in the future." 

UP NEXT
Wayne State will finish their time at the ITA National Indoor Championship on Sunday evening, where they will battle #2-ranked Columbus State in the third place match. The rematch of the NCAA Championship Semifinals from 2022 is set to begin at 5:30 p.m. 


 
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