University of Tennessee Athletics
Walton Executes Comeback to Advance to NCAA Singles Semifinals
May 26, 2022 | Men's Tennis
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The stellar run in the NCAA Singles Championship continued for Tennessee men's tennis graduate student Adam Walton Thursday, as he bested 21st-ranked Gabriel Diallo of Kentucky in the Round of 8, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(3) to advance to the semifinal round.
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With the win, Walton surpasses five-time All-American Mikelis Libietis for the fifth-most combined singles and doubles wins in Tennessee program history, with 225 combined victories.
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In the opening set Thursday, third-ranked Walton went down a break at 2-4 after Diallo won that game on deuce point. Walton took Diallo to deuce point in the ensuing game, but Diallo held to go up 5-2. Walton broke back at 4-5 in the first set, but Diallo responded with another break of his own to take the first set, 6-4.
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Set two saw Walton respond by earning a break in the first game. Diallo would end up breaking back to even the set at 2-2, but Walton broke once more to take a 4-3 advantage in the second set. Late in the set, Walton won nine consecutive points en route to an eventual 6-4 set victory.
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The match was sent to a third set and after Diallo held in the first game, Walton answered with a hold of his own on deuce point to even the set at 1-all. Diallo held serve on deuce point to go up 3-2 and the first break of the set came when Diallo earned a break to go up 5-3. Needing a break to avoid elimination, Walton did just that and then held serve to bring the set to 5-5.
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At 6-6, a third-set tiebreaker was needed to determine the match winner. Walton was down 1-2 with two serves from Diallo upcoming and then led at 4-3 ahead of another pair of Diallo serves. Walton took the tiebreaker 7-3 and won the match on an overhead winner at the net.
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UP NEXT
Walton will face second-ranked Ben Shelton (Florida) Friday in the NCAA Singles Semifinals. Shelton defeated Stanford's No. 15 Arthur Fery Thursday, 6-3, 6-4. Friday's match will be streamed live on the TennisONE app, with live stats being provided here.
RESULTS
Singles
R8: #3 Adam Walton (Tenn.) def. #21 Gabriel Diallo (Kentucky) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(3)
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With the win, Walton surpasses five-time All-American Mikelis Libietis for the fifth-most combined singles and doubles wins in Tennessee program history, with 225 combined victories.
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In the opening set Thursday, third-ranked Walton went down a break at 2-4 after Diallo won that game on deuce point. Walton took Diallo to deuce point in the ensuing game, but Diallo held to go up 5-2. Walton broke back at 4-5 in the first set, but Diallo responded with another break of his own to take the first set, 6-4.
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Set two saw Walton respond by earning a break in the first game. Diallo would end up breaking back to even the set at 2-2, but Walton broke once more to take a 4-3 advantage in the second set. Late in the set, Walton won nine consecutive points en route to an eventual 6-4 set victory.
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The match was sent to a third set and after Diallo held in the first game, Walton answered with a hold of his own on deuce point to even the set at 1-all. Diallo held serve on deuce point to go up 3-2 and the first break of the set came when Diallo earned a break to go up 5-3. Needing a break to avoid elimination, Walton did just that and then held serve to bring the set to 5-5.
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At 6-6, a third-set tiebreaker was needed to determine the match winner. Walton was down 1-2 with two serves from Diallo upcoming and then led at 4-3 ahead of another pair of Diallo serves. Walton took the tiebreaker 7-3 and won the match on an overhead winner at the net.
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UP NEXT
Walton will face second-ranked Ben Shelton (Florida) Friday in the NCAA Singles Semifinals. Shelton defeated Stanford's No. 15 Arthur Fery Thursday, 6-3, 6-4. Friday's match will be streamed live on the TennisONE app, with live stats being provided here.
RESULTS
Singles
R8: #3 Adam Walton (Tenn.) def. #21 Gabriel Diallo (Kentucky) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(3)
Players Mentioned
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