Following a historic upset win over the top-seed Sebastian Gorzny on Wednesday, Nov. 20, Princeton’s Paul Inchauspe returned to the singles court as the last Tiger standing in the Sweet 16 of this year’s NCAA Championships. In a run that already put him in elite Princeton company, he looked to keep the run alive and reach the quarterfinals against Florida State’s All-American Corey Craig.
Paul Inchauspe’s singles run ended in a hard-fought three-set loss in the Sweet 16, while he and senior Filippos Astreinidis fell in straight sets in the doubles draw to a top-seeded Mississippi State pair.
In his singles match, Inchauspe continued his strong start from the last game, and toward the end, it looked like the match would be another tight battle. Starting off, Inchauspe was able to steal a break from Craig while up 4–3 to get an opportunity to serve the set out at 5–3. However, Craig was able to break back before Inchauspe turned the tide with a 7–6 tiebreak win.
As was true for the match thus far, the success was short-lived, as Inchauspe was broken to open the second set. Playing from behind throughout the set after that, another break while down 4–2 put the set out of reach and Craig served it out to take a 6–2 second set victory.
Inchauspe temporarily regained his footing in the opening game of the third and deciding set, fighting back from deuce to hold serve. However, the match quickly spiraled out of control after that, as Craig blazed through the next six games to take a 6–7 (2), 6–2, 6–1 victory.
“He didn’t give me anything,” Inchauspe told The Daily Princetonian. “He really made me earn every single point.”
“It wasn’t like my best performance, unfortunately. Credit to him, he was extremely constant throughout the match,” he continued.
Much of what was successful for Inchauspe in the first set, like his powerful first serve and returning ability, was less effective in the deciding set. Inchauspe won 76 percent of his first serve points and 34 percent of Craig’s first serve points in the first set but only won 47 percent of his own and 10 percent of Craig’s in the third.
“I had a problem with my arm, so that I think affected my serving performance today,” Inchauspe said. “It was the first time that the NCAA singles and doubles were [held] in the fall, so it was an experiment for them.”
Ultimately, Craig’s dominance in the final two sets sucked the life out of Inchauspe’s run. Inchauspe generated eight break points and won three, but Craig had too many opportunities, converting eight of 18 — more than enough to take the win.
“At the end of the match, long rallies were just like, killing me,” Inchauspe noted. “It didn’t feel like I could do much, and he just didn’t miss anything. It just felt like it was going to be extremely hard to win.”
But while Inchauspe’s inspiring run in the singles draw came to an end, he continued his day of play in the doubles draw. Just three hours after he finished his singles matchup, he paired with senior Filippos Astreinidis, and they faced the tall task of the third-seeded pair of Benito Sanchez Martinez and Petar Jovanovic of Mississippi State.
“I definitely felt some fatigue from the match yesterday and from doubles, which was also very demanding,” Inchauspe noted. “I think conditions were good for him. I was a little bit tired, and I couldn’t keep up with him.”
The match had a chaotic start while both sides settled in. No player was able to hold their serve the first time around, leading to an even 2–2 start. After that, both sides became more comfortable on serve until the Bulldogs took a deciding break to go up 4–3. They would seize on that to make the difference in the first set, only surrendering one more point on serve to close it out 6–4.
The second set started even as well, but that didn't last for long. After a 1–1 start, the Bulldog pair won a game on every player’s serve to jump out to a commanding 5–1 lead, taking the remaining hope from the Tigers. Inchauspe and Astreinidis finally held, but it was too little too late, as Mississippi State closed out the set with a 6–4, 6–2 victory.
“[Astreinidis and I] played a great match yesterday; unfortunately, just came up short today against good players,” Inchauspe said. “But it’s great to be here, [and] it was really a pleasure to play with him.”
Despite a strong season for Inchauspe and Astreinidis on the doubles side, the Bulldog pair neutralized their weapons in the loss. While both are normally strong servers, they only won 50 percent of their points on serve — not nearly enough to stay competitive against one of the top seeds.
Though the Princeton NCAA Individuals run is now concluded for men’s tennis, it was one to be remembered. It marked the first time since 1980 that Princeton has had two players in the second round of the singles draw, and Inchauspe’s win over Gorzny showed the power of Princeton tennis on the national stage.
The tennis season will continue in the spring, with Princeton playing more matches at the new Meadows Campus’s Racquet Center, which opened earlier this fall.
“That would be great to have to have some support over there during our spring matches,” Inchauspe noted. “We’re looking forward to winning some big matches at home and playing some more good tennis.”
Hayk Yengibaryan is an associate Sports editor and News contributor for the ‘Prince.’
Tate Hutchins is an associate Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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