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TCU Tennis has #3 Florida on the ropes a week ago, up 3-0 over the Gators before dropping four straight matches to come up on the wrong end of the win column. A heart-breaker like that can derail a season for some programs... but thankfully for Frog fans, not TCU’s.
The Horned Frogs bounced back from that loss over the weekend with a pair of top ten wins, as they crushed #3 Mississippi State and #7 UCLA as part of the ITA National Team Indoor Championship in Chicago. Opening against the previously undefeated Bulldogs, the Horned Frogs got off to a slow start, dropping their opening doubles set. But four straight singles victories by State on their heels, sending TCU to a 4-1 victory. Freshman Sander Jong won for the first time at the collegiate level, and 83rd ranked Bertus Kruger scored an upset over #64 Niclas Braun. Another freshman, Luc Famba, moved to 3-0 on the season with an upset of his own over 98th ranked Trevor Foshey of the ‘Dawgs to sew up the dub.
After dropping their second match of the tournament to #8 UNC 3-4, the Frogs bounced back with a straight set win over #7 UCLA. A pair of of victories in the doubles matches led to the first point of the day, and five wins in six sets in singles made it a clean sweep for TCU. Kruger continued his solid play while #75 Alastair Gray also got it done for the Frogs. Head coach David Roditi was pleased with the effort, and the wins. “Coming to this tournament is a huge privilege for any team and every coach knows that winning any match is very hard to do here. Two elite teams will leave Chicago 0-3 from this trip and it can happen to any team. Leaving here with a 2-1 record is remarkable and something to be very proud and optimistic about. We had some players really step up on this trip. Bertus Kruger, Sander Jong and Luc Fomba had a great trip. They made the difference and I’m happy for them and I’m sure they will continue to work so they can have this feeling as often as possible. Midtown Athletic Club here in Chicago and the ITA did a great job with this event and we feel very privileged to have been a part of this experience. We also want to thank our Frog Fans from Chicago who came to support us and made us feel welcomed, supported and loved.”
The Frogs will play their next two opponents on the road (at Tulane and at USF) before returning to Fort Worth to take on Rice Saturday, March 2nd. Big 12 play begins on Friday, March 29th, with the Frogs traveling to Waco to take on the Bears.