Pirates Hold On To Top Navy 4-3

Friday, January 31

Greenville, N.C.

2:30 PM

East Carolina University

United States Naval Academy

Photo by: Rob Taylor

January 31, 2020 | Men's Tennis

Box Score Box Score

GREENVILLE, N.C. – Early points made sure the ECU men's tennis team did not have to sweat a late comeback as the Pirates beat Navy 4-3 on Friday afternoon at the ECU Indoor Tennis Center.

"Close one today, we had some chances early in the match to really pull away from Navy but they did a great job of hanging and keeping the pressure on us," said head coach Shawn Heinchon. "Great work by Simon (Labbe) to close out his match that ultimately swung the match in our direction"

ECU improves to a perfect 3-0 on the season while Navy falls to 2-3.

The Pirates got off to a 1-0 start by winning the doubles point for the third straight match, but this one could have easily gone the other way. Simon Labbe and Agustin Tamagnone continued their excelled start as a partnership, jumping out to a 4-1 lead and eventually beating Reilly Wilson and Finn Garner 6-3 on court one. Labbe and Tamagnone are now 5-1 when paired together.

It looked like ECU would cruise to the second point as Diogo Marques and Federico Masetti were up 5-2 on Gavin Segraves and Christian Pumpelly on court three. However, the Midshipmen pair won four straight games to take the lead. Instead, the point was clinched by Wisse Jonker and Javier Renones on court two. The veteran pair went back and forth with Jan Kjellberg and Derrick Thompson, never leading by more than two games. Jonker and Renones finally clinched when they took a break point for a 7-5 victory.

With three singles matches taking the courts first, ECU took two of the three first sets. Renones continued his strong dual match play, beating Segraves 6-1, 6-2 on court three, his third straight win. Navy got on the scoreboard though when Thompson beat Marques 6-4, 6-2 on court one. It was the first loss of the season for Marques, who had been 10-0 in singles.

Labbe started strong, winning his first set against Garner 6-4. But Garner won the second set by the same score to even the match. Labbe, who was playing on court two for the first time in his career, answered the bell and won the third set for a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory that eventually proved pivotal.

The Pirates clinched the match shortly after Labbe's win. Tamagnone beat Wilson 6-4, 6-4 to score the clinching point for ECU for the second straight match. Labbe and Tamagnone continue to be first and second on the team in singles wins with 13 and 12, respectively.

With the match already decided, the Midshipmen took the final two matches of the day. Connors O'Brien beat Jonker 6-3, 6-2 while Masetti fell to Pumpelly in a three-set match, with the final score 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (10-6).

ECU will be back home on Sunday afternoon as the Pirates host Winthrop. First serve is scheduled for 12 noon inside the ECU Indoor Tennis Center.

Singles Results
1. Derrick Thompson (Navy) def. No. 103 Diogo Marques (ECU) 6-4, 6-2
2. Simon Labbe (ECU) def. Finn Garner (Navy) 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
3. Javier Renones (ECU) def. Gavin Segraves (Navy) 6-1, 6-2
4. Agustin Tamagnone (ECU) def. Reilly Wilson (Navy) 6-4, 6-4
5. Conners O'Brien (Navy) def. Wisse Jonker (ECU) 6-3, 6-2
6. Christian Pumpelly (Navy) def. Federico Masetti (ECU) 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (10-6)

Doubles Results
1. Simon Labbe/Agustin Tamagnone (ECU) def. Reilly Wilson/Finn Garner (Navy) 6-3
2. Wisse Jonker/Javier Renones (ECU) def. Jan Kjellberg/Derrick Thompson (Navy) 7-5
3. Diogo Marques/Federico Masetti (ECU) def. Gavin Segraves/Christian Pumpelly (Navy) 5-6, unfinished

Order of Finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (3,1,2,4,5,6)