Marquette Claims First-Ever BIG EAST Title
4/29/2018 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
The Marquette University men's tennis team (17-6) claimed its first-ever BIG EAST Conference championship on Sunday afternoon, downing top-seeded DePaul, 4-1, in the league tournament title match at the Cayce Tennis & Fitness Center in Cayce, S.C.
The Golden Eagles, who were playing for the BIG EAST title for the fourth-straight year, have earned the conference's automatic bid to the 2018 NCAA Championship. The tournament field will be announced on NCAA.com at 4:30 p.m. CT on Tuesday, May 1. Opening round play begins on campus sites on either May 11 or 12.
Marquette will be making its first-ever appearance as a team in the NCAA Championship.
"I couldn't be more proud of this group and the way we competed this weekend," head coach Steve Rodecap said. "We responded to adversity every step of the way and that makes this title even more special.
"I also want to thank all of the players who have helped build the foundation of this program," Rodecap added. "We have obviously been very close in recent years and this title is as much theirs as it is this year's team."
Sophomore Brandon Shanklin, who returned to the regular lineup in the tourney opener, tied the score at 1-1 with a 6-2, 6-4 win at No. 6. Shanklin hadn't been in the lineup since late March and finished the weekend with a trio of straight-set wins.
Marquette moved ahead 3-1 after a 6-3, 7-5 win by sophomore Luke Smrek at No. 2 and a 6-1, 7-6 decision by junior Greg Anderson at No. 4. With freshman Luis Heredia Gomez poised to clinch the team win for the second-straight day, junior Alvaro Verdu beat him to the finish line with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 win at No. 1 singles.
Verdu, who posted three wins at the No. 1 spot on the weekend, was named the tourney's most valuable player.
The Golden Eagles opened the match by dropping the doubles point, falling at the No. 1 and No. 3 positions.
Players Mentioned
