Mengel?s Qualifying Run Ends

TULSA, Okla. - Playing in his sixth singles match in five days, freshman Chris Mengel fell just short of qualifying for the ITA All-American Championships main draw with a three set loss on Wednesday.

Overall it was the eighth match since Saturday morning for Mengel who also played in two doubles contests. He was coming off playing three matches on Tuesday, including one singles and the two doubles.

The freshman from Pittsburgh, Pa., squared off against No. 54 Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan of Washington in the final round of qualifying with the winner to move on to the main draw. Mengel fought his way to a tiebreaker win in the second set, 7-6, to stay alive after losing the first set 6-3. In the third set he trailed 4-1 but battled his way back to a 4-4 tie. However, Nedunchezhiyan was able break serve for the win at 6-4 and advance forward, ending Mengel's five-match winning streak.

The main draw begins tomorrow with the first two rounds of singles and one doubles round. Play is scheduled to start at 8 a.m. and two Blue Devils will be competing for the championship. No. 2 Henrique Cunha earned an automatic bid as a top-ranked player while Reid Carleton received a bid as an alternate. The two players will also compete in doubles together as the No. 1 ranked team in the nation.

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