St. John's University Athletics
Sunday, April 25
Cayce, S.C (Cayce Tennis Center)
2 p.m.
St. John's University
4
vs
2
Marquette (Semifinals)
Red Storm Drops Marquette, 4-2, to advance to BIG EAST Championship Match
4/25/2021 5:58:00 PM | Men's Tennis
Johnnies will look to repeat as champions on Monday against DePaul
CAYCE, S.C. – The No. 2 St. John's men's tennis team took down No. 3 Marquette, 4-2, to advance to the finals of the BIG EAST Tennis Championships presented by Jeep for the second consecutive season.
The defending champion Red Storm (16-1, 3-0 BIG EAST) will battle No. 1 DePaul (14-6, 5-0 BIG EAST) on Monday at 1 p.m. for an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
The match, originally scheduled to be played at 2 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, got underway 24 hours late due to rain. Despite the delay, the Red Storm came out ready to go, taking the team point in doubles play before victories from Giuseppe De Camelis, Ignacio Garcia and Louis-nils Michel clinched the team's berth in the finals.
In doubles play, De Camelis and Michel led things off on the No. 3 court with a win for the Red Storm, taking their match, 6-1. The next decision came in the No. 1 position where Charlie James and Garcia dropped their bout, 6-3. With a crucial 1-0 advantage hanging in the balance, Djuro Opacic and Evan Felcher came up with a huge victory, 6-3, on the No. 2 court to lock up the first team point for the Red Storm.
In singles play, the first decision came on the No. 6 court where the reigning BIG EAST Player of the Week De Camelis took his match over Ian Brady in straight sets, 6-1 and 6-3, to give the Johnnies the 2-0 advantage. The win marked the 14th of the season and sixth in a row for the Red Storm sophomore. De Camelis has finished singles play with a win first in each of the Johnnies two tournament matches.
On the No. 1 court, Opacic fell in straight sets to Fran San Andres, 6-3 and 6-3, as Marquette cut the deficit in half in the match, 2-1.
Garcia's match on the No. 2 court went the distance, as the senior battled Luis Heredia to a third set before prevailing, 6-4, in the final frame. The San Juan, Puerto Rico, native remains undefeated in 2021 with a record of 12-0, as his team grabbed a 3-1 advantage in the contest with his win.
Next up on the No. 3 court, James fell in a decisive third set, 7-5, to Stefan Dragovic as Marquette drew closer, making it a 3-2 Red Storm lead in the contest.
Finally, Michel was able to put the match to bed in a competitive two-set victory over Tin Krstulovic, winning the second set, 7-6, in a tiebreaker to clinch the Johnnies berth in the finals. The victory was the tenth of the season for the Red Storm senior in singles play.
The No. 1 Blue Demons clinched their first berth in the finals since the 2018 season today with a convincing 5-0 win over Butler. DePaul is 14-6 on the season, including a 5-1 mark against BIG EAST opponents, as the top seed also defeated Georgetown, 4-0, on Friday. The Johnnies and Blue Demons last met in the semifinals of the 2019 BIG EAST Tennis Championships which resulted in a 4-0 Red Storm victory.
Monday's championship match will get underway at 1 p.m. and be broadcast live on the BIG EAST Digital Network with John Fanta and Joe Gentry on the call from Cayce, S.C. Live stats are also available for the match via BIGEAST.com as the Red Storm looks to repeat as BIG EAST champions.
Doubles
Luis Heredia/Fran San Andres (MU) def. Charlie James/Ignacio Garcia (SJU) 6-3
Djuro Opacic/Evan Felcher (SJU) def. Ian Brady/Stefan Dragovic (MU) 6-3
Giuseppe DeCamelis/Louis-Nils Michel (SJU) def. Rami Scheetz/Shaddy Khalafallah (MU) 6-1
Order: 3, 1, 2
Singles
San Andres (MU) def. Opacic (SJU) 6-3, 6-3
Garcia (SJU) def. Heredia (MU) 3-6, 6-0, 6-4
Dragovic (MU) def. James (SJU) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
Michel (SJU) def. Tin Krstulovic (MU) 6-4, 7-6(3)
Nikola Kijac (MU) leading Felcher (SJU) 7-6 (9), 0-6, 5-0 DNF
DeCamelis (SJU) def. Brady (MU) 6-1, 6-3
Order: 6, 1, 2, 3, 4
The defending champion Red Storm (16-1, 3-0 BIG EAST) will battle No. 1 DePaul (14-6, 5-0 BIG EAST) on Monday at 1 p.m. for an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
The match, originally scheduled to be played at 2 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, got underway 24 hours late due to rain. Despite the delay, the Red Storm came out ready to go, taking the team point in doubles play before victories from Giuseppe De Camelis, Ignacio Garcia and Louis-nils Michel clinched the team's berth in the finals.
In doubles play, De Camelis and Michel led things off on the No. 3 court with a win for the Red Storm, taking their match, 6-1. The next decision came in the No. 1 position where Charlie James and Garcia dropped their bout, 6-3. With a crucial 1-0 advantage hanging in the balance, Djuro Opacic and Evan Felcher came up with a huge victory, 6-3, on the No. 2 court to lock up the first team point for the Red Storm.
In singles play, the first decision came on the No. 6 court where the reigning BIG EAST Player of the Week De Camelis took his match over Ian Brady in straight sets, 6-1 and 6-3, to give the Johnnies the 2-0 advantage. The win marked the 14th of the season and sixth in a row for the Red Storm sophomore. De Camelis has finished singles play with a win first in each of the Johnnies two tournament matches.
On the No. 1 court, Opacic fell in straight sets to Fran San Andres, 6-3 and 6-3, as Marquette cut the deficit in half in the match, 2-1.
Garcia's match on the No. 2 court went the distance, as the senior battled Luis Heredia to a third set before prevailing, 6-4, in the final frame. The San Juan, Puerto Rico, native remains undefeated in 2021 with a record of 12-0, as his team grabbed a 3-1 advantage in the contest with his win.
Next up on the No. 3 court, James fell in a decisive third set, 7-5, to Stefan Dragovic as Marquette drew closer, making it a 3-2 Red Storm lead in the contest.
Finally, Michel was able to put the match to bed in a competitive two-set victory over Tin Krstulovic, winning the second set, 7-6, in a tiebreaker to clinch the Johnnies berth in the finals. The victory was the tenth of the season for the Red Storm senior in singles play.
The No. 1 Blue Demons clinched their first berth in the finals since the 2018 season today with a convincing 5-0 win over Butler. DePaul is 14-6 on the season, including a 5-1 mark against BIG EAST opponents, as the top seed also defeated Georgetown, 4-0, on Friday. The Johnnies and Blue Demons last met in the semifinals of the 2019 BIG EAST Tennis Championships which resulted in a 4-0 Red Storm victory.
Monday's championship match will get underway at 1 p.m. and be broadcast live on the BIG EAST Digital Network with John Fanta and Joe Gentry on the call from Cayce, S.C. Live stats are also available for the match via BIGEAST.com as the Red Storm looks to repeat as BIG EAST champions.
Doubles
Luis Heredia/Fran San Andres (MU) def. Charlie James/Ignacio Garcia (SJU) 6-3
Djuro Opacic/Evan Felcher (SJU) def. Ian Brady/Stefan Dragovic (MU) 6-3
Giuseppe DeCamelis/Louis-Nils Michel (SJU) def. Rami Scheetz/Shaddy Khalafallah (MU) 6-1
Order: 3, 1, 2
Singles
San Andres (MU) def. Opacic (SJU) 6-3, 6-3
Garcia (SJU) def. Heredia (MU) 3-6, 6-0, 6-4
Dragovic (MU) def. James (SJU) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
Michel (SJU) def. Tin Krstulovic (MU) 6-4, 7-6(3)
Nikola Kijac (MU) leading Felcher (SJU) 7-6 (9), 0-6, 5-0 DNF
DeCamelis (SJU) def. Brady (MU) 6-1, 6-3
Order: 6, 1, 2, 3, 4
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
Men's Tennis NCAA Selection Show
Tuesday, April 30