State's Ambert Falls In Second Round Of NCAA Singles Championship
May 25, 2016 | Men's Tennis
Ambert, currently ranked 19th nationally, secured the first set in a tiebreaker 7-6(5), but the 14th-ranked Junaid, a 9-16 seed, rallied to claim the final two sets for a 6-7(5), 6-2, 7-5 victory. Junaid now owns a 3-1 lead in the series between the two players all-time.
Early in the second set, a 15-minute delay due to a bank of lights going out in the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Center seemed to affect Ambert's momentum as Junaid broke him at 2-1, held for a 4-1 lead and rode that lead to even the contest. Junaid grabbed an early 2-0 lead in the third frame, but Ambert broke right back for 2-1 and the players stayed on serve until Junaid led 6-5. It was then that Junaid would break Ambert again, this time for the decisive game in the match.
"We knew this would be a tough matchup for Romain," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said. "Every match he and Rameez have played have been battles. He is disappointed with the loss, but he played well. It was the difference of just a couple of points that decided the whole match."
The all-American Ambert, a junior, is now 79-30 overall in singles during his MSU career. He will be one of five lettermen returning for State next season.
MSU IN THE 2003 NCAA SINGLES CHAMPIONSHIP
May 21-26 - Athens, Ga.
Second Round (Thursday, May 22)
#14 Rameez Junaid (Auburn) def. #19 Romain Ambert (MSU) 6-7(5), 6-2, 7-5.
(numbers preceding names indicate current national rankings)
