Sunday, January 26
Knoxville
1 PM
University of Tennessee
1
vs
4
Michigan
No. 14 Tennessee Drops Battle to No. 25 Michigan, 4-1
January 26, 2025 | Men's Tennis
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 14 Tennessee men's tennis team came up short against No. 25 Michigan, 4-1, in the ITA Kickoff Weekend Championship on Sunday afternoon at Goodfriend Tennis Center.
UT (4-2) was unable to win the doubles point to open the match. Michigan (3-0) gained their two wins on courts two and three to give the Wolverines a 1-0 lead heading into singles.
Alex Kotzen and Shunsuke Mitsui were down against Gavin Young and Bjorn Swenson, 3-5, before the match went unfinished.
After Michigan opened the scoring in singles with a victory on court one to jump out to a 2-0 advantage, No. 18 Mitsui tallied a 7-5, 6-0 triumph over Michigan's Swenson. The senior now has reached the 20-win mark in singles in each of his four seasons at Tennessee.
Jan Kobierski and James Newton battled against their opponents to give the Big Orange a glimmer of hope late in the match. Kobierski fought to reach three sets, tallying a level score of 7-6(6), 4-6, 1-1, against No. 113 Patorn Hanchaikul. Reaching an advantage of 7-6(6), 6(5)-7, 4-2, versus Alex Cairo in the third set through two tiebreakers, Newton had given the Vols momentum on one court to try and chip away at the deficit.
However, the Wolverines were able to gather a singles victory and the final point on court five to close out the match.
SHUN ETCHED IN HISTORY
With today's singles win, senior Shunsuke Mitsui has moved himself into ninth place in school history for singles victories, logging 112 on his career to date. The Shizuoka, Japan, native has tied VFL Adam Carey (1999-2002) for the impressive accolade.
UP NEXT
Tennessee is set to play host to No. 17 Michigan State on Friday, Jan. 31 at 5 p.m. ET at Goodfriend Tennis Center.
For the most up-to-date information about the program, follow Tennessee men's tennis on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook.
RESULTS
Doubles
1. Alex Kotzen/Shunsuke Mitsui (TENN) vs. Gavin Young/Bjorn Swenson (MICH) 3-5, unfinished
2. Patorn Hanchaikul/Benjamin Kittay (MICH) def. Alan Jesudason/Jan Kobierski (TENN) 6-4
3. #119 Alex Cairo/Will Cooksey (MICH) def. Alejandro Moreno/James Newton (TENN) 6-2
Order of Finish: 3,2
Singles
1. Benjamin Kittay (MICH) def. #34 Alex Kotzen (TENN) 6-3, 6-4
2. #18 Shunsuke Mitsui (TENN) def. Bjorn Swenson (MICH) 7-5, 6-0
3. Will Cooksey (MICH) def. Jose Garcia (TENN) 4-6, 6-4, 6-2
4. Jan Kobierski (TENN) vs. #113 Patorn Hanchaikul (MICH) 7-6 (8-6), 4-6, 1-1, unfinished
5. Nicholas Steiglehner (MICH) def. #56 Alejandro Moreno (TENN) 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-2)
6. James Newton (TENN) vs. Alex Cairo (MICH) 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (5-7), 4-2, unfinished
Order of Finish: 1,2,3,5
UT (4-2) was unable to win the doubles point to open the match. Michigan (3-0) gained their two wins on courts two and three to give the Wolverines a 1-0 lead heading into singles.
Alex Kotzen and Shunsuke Mitsui were down against Gavin Young and Bjorn Swenson, 3-5, before the match went unfinished.
After Michigan opened the scoring in singles with a victory on court one to jump out to a 2-0 advantage, No. 18 Mitsui tallied a 7-5, 6-0 triumph over Michigan's Swenson. The senior now has reached the 20-win mark in singles in each of his four seasons at Tennessee.
Jan Kobierski and James Newton battled against their opponents to give the Big Orange a glimmer of hope late in the match. Kobierski fought to reach three sets, tallying a level score of 7-6(6), 4-6, 1-1, against No. 113 Patorn Hanchaikul. Reaching an advantage of 7-6(6), 6(5)-7, 4-2, versus Alex Cairo in the third set through two tiebreakers, Newton had given the Vols momentum on one court to try and chip away at the deficit.
However, the Wolverines were able to gather a singles victory and the final point on court five to close out the match.
SHUN ETCHED IN HISTORY
With today's singles win, senior Shunsuke Mitsui has moved himself into ninth place in school history for singles victories, logging 112 on his career to date. The Shizuoka, Japan, native has tied VFL Adam Carey (1999-2002) for the impressive accolade.
UP NEXT
Tennessee is set to play host to No. 17 Michigan State on Friday, Jan. 31 at 5 p.m. ET at Goodfriend Tennis Center.
For the most up-to-date information about the program, follow Tennessee men's tennis on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook.
RESULTS
Doubles
1. Alex Kotzen/Shunsuke Mitsui (TENN) vs. Gavin Young/Bjorn Swenson (MICH) 3-5, unfinished
2. Patorn Hanchaikul/Benjamin Kittay (MICH) def. Alan Jesudason/Jan Kobierski (TENN) 6-4
3. #119 Alex Cairo/Will Cooksey (MICH) def. Alejandro Moreno/James Newton (TENN) 6-2
Order of Finish: 3,2
Singles
1. Benjamin Kittay (MICH) def. #34 Alex Kotzen (TENN) 6-3, 6-4
2. #18 Shunsuke Mitsui (TENN) def. Bjorn Swenson (MICH) 7-5, 6-0
3. Will Cooksey (MICH) def. Jose Garcia (TENN) 4-6, 6-4, 6-2
4. Jan Kobierski (TENN) vs. #113 Patorn Hanchaikul (MICH) 7-6 (8-6), 4-6, 1-1, unfinished
5. Nicholas Steiglehner (MICH) def. #56 Alejandro Moreno (TENN) 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-2)
6. James Newton (TENN) vs. Alex Cairo (MICH) 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (5-7), 4-2, unfinished
Order of Finish: 1,2,3,5
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,2
#1 Singles Match
12
Benjamin Kittay / 0 [MICH]
66
34
#2 Singles Match
12
Bjorn Swenson / 0 [MICH]
50
76
#3 Singles Match
123
Will Cooksey / 0 [MICH]
466
642
#4 Singles Match
1234
Patorn Hanchaikul / 0 (113/-) [MICH]
6610
741UF
#5 Singles Match
123
Nicholas Steiglehner / 0 [MICH]
667
376
#6 Singles Match
1234
Alex Cairo / 0 [MICH]
6720
764UF
Order of Finish:
1,2,3,5
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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