The third-ranked HPU men’s tennis team won the NCAA Division II Championship in Denver on Saturday, beating No. 1 St. Leo 5-3. HPU (21-3), which lost in the last two national finals, captured the program’s first championship by winning the final two singles matches of the dual meeting.
“Unbelievable,” said HPU coach Hendrik Bode. “We’ve had so much heartbreak the last two years, just sadness really. I think that makes this one very special.”
Tied 3-3, HPU’s Torben Otto defeated Guillaume Vanelven 6-4, 5-7, 6-1 at No. 5 singles. The attention then turned to the last two matches that were both in the tiebreak of the third set. Filip Dolezel clinched the Sharks’ title with a 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 win over Jaime Bueno at No. 4 singles.
“They kept believing and ultimately that’s what really pulled it through,” Bode said.
HPU’s Thibaud Berland, the top-ranked singles player in D-II, won 6-3, 6-3 at No.1 singles and Clemens Graute won 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 at No. 6 singles. Dolezel and Jaume Martinez-Vich won at No. 2 doubles.
Bode hugged his three seniors — Berland, Graute and Martinez-Vich — after the match. He was thrilled those three finished off their careers with the elusive title.
“They’ve lost in two finals, and for them to win this one — this was their college match, last match for HPU — it was special for them,” Bode said.
St. Leo, which won two of the three doubles matches, finishes the year 27-2, with both losses coming to HPU.
“We had the experience on our side,” Bode said. “Most of these guy had been in this situation before. They knew anything can happen.”
Third-ranked Armstrong State defeated top-ranked BYU-Hawaii 5-3 to win the women’s championship. BYUH led 2-1 after the doubles matches before Armstrong (32-1) rallied to win four singles matches to capture the program’s 10th national title. BYUH (25-1) has lost to Armstrong in five national finals. The Seasiders last won the national title in 2007.
