Box Score
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Illinois secured 12 total wins during its time at Chowderfest hosted by Harvard in Cambridge, Mass., from Sept. 20-22. Tyler Bowers, Mathis Debru, Zach Viiala, and Jeremy Zhang represented the Fighting Illini at the three-day event, which saw all four Orange and Blue student-athletes pick multiple singles victories over the course of the weekend.
Viiala secured the first tournament triumph of his collegiate career, claiming the singles title.
Bowers was the lone Illini to win all three of his singles matches, while Debru, Viiala, and Zhang tallied two singles triumphs apiece during their time in Massachusetts.
"What a great weekend of tennis," said head coach Brad Dancer. "Harvard was first class in hosting this event. It has been great to see the progression of Tyler Bowers, and he is beginning to understand some of his capabilities. Zach is showing good court awareness but needs to be more assertive. Jeremy really struggled with his fundamentals, but he was gritty this weekend. I think he made a breakthrough in his final set. Mathis showed good calmness under duress, but he, like Zach, can assert his will more. Doubles play needs to be a point of emphasis for our entire team."
Day 1
Illinois began its weekend on the East Coast with four victories against opponents from Yale. The Illini and the Bulldogs split their matches in doubles play, with Debru and Zhang teaming up to defeat Yale's Krish Gupta and Dylan Tsoi, 6-3. Bowers and Viiala fell in the other doubles match between the sides, dropping a 6-3 decision to Vignesh Gogineni and Jason Shuler.
Viiala avenged his doubles loss with the first ranked win of his collegiate career, taking down No. 50 Vignesh Gogineni in a three-set thriller. After Viiala secured a 6-0 first-set victory and Gogineni bounced back with a 6-1 triumph in the second set, the match went to a pivotal third frame. Both players fought hard throughout the back-and-forth battle, but Viiala prevailed to win the set, 14-12, and the match.
Bowers made quick work of Yale's Jim Ji for his first win of the season. An efficient 6-1, 6-3 victory sent Bowers past the Bulldog sophomore.
Debru also picked up his first singles victory of the year, posting a 6-4, 7-6(5) triumph to earn both a singles and a doubles win on the day.
Zhang suffered a 6-3, 6-2 defeat to Yale's Eric Li.
Day 2
The Illini fell in both doubles matches to begin their second day of competition in Cambridge. Bowers and Viiala came up short, 6-4, against the nationally ranked pairing of No. 86 Benjamin Privara and Masato Perera of Harvard. The Crimson duo of Melchior Delloye and Rohan Murali defeated Debru and Zhang, 6-3.
Illinois picked up two singles wins to close out the day. Bowers recorded his second singles triumph of the weekend, this time in three sets. A 6-3 first-set win put Bowers in front before Harvard's Melchior Delloye responded with a 6-1 triumph in the second frame. Bowers fought back in the third, claiming an 11-9 decision in the tiebreaker to move to 2-0 on the weekend in singles play.
Zhang notched his first singles win of the season in a three-set win over Notre Dame's Jayanth Devaiah. After falling in the opening frame, Zhang evened the match with a 6-2 victory in the second set. A back-and-forth tiebreaking third set went Zhang's way, 10-8, and saw him register the win.
Viiala dropped his singles match to No. 68-ranked Benjamin Privara of Harvard, 6-2, 6-3. Debru suffered a 7-6(5), 7-6(5) defeat to Crimson junior Masato Perera.
Day 3
The Orange and Blue closed out their time at Chowderfest in style, winning both doubles matches and all four singles contests on Sunday.
The Illini switched up their doubles pairings on the final day of competition. Debru and Viiala teamed up for the first time and came away with a 6-3 victory over Cornell's Rushil Khosla and Petar Teodorovic. Bowers and Zhang battled to a gritty 7-6(5) triumph over the Boise State tandem of John Chin and James Van Herzeele.
In singles play, Zhang clinched his second consecutive singles win, this time in straight sets. The Illini sophomore recorded a 7-6(6), 6-2 victory over Notre Dame's Luis Llorens Saracho to round out his run at Chowderfest.
Debru bounced back from Saturday's defeat to prevail in three sets over SMU's Noah McDonald. Taking the first set before dropping the second, Debru secured a 10-7 decision in the third-set tiebreaker for his second singles win of the weekend.
Viiala also needed three sets to pick up his second win of the competition. A 6-4 winner in the opening frame, the Illini redshirt freshman fell in the second set, 6-3, to send the match to a third-set tiebreaker. Claiming the 6-4 win in the third set, Viiala posted a 2-1 weekend in singles action, with the lone loss coming against a ranked opponent.
Bowers' win on Sunday sent him to 3-0 on the season in singles action. Needing three sets to secure the undefeated weekend, Bowers claimed a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 triumph in his third victory at Chowderfest.
Up Next
Illinois will send select student-athletes to the Milwaukee Tennis Classic from Sept. 27-29.
Results
Day 1 - Sept. 20
Doubles
Mathis Debru / Jeremy Zhang (Illinois) def. Krish Gupta / Dylan Tsoi (Yale), 6-3
Vignesh Gogineni / Jason Shuler (Yale) def. Tyler Bowers / Zach Viiala (Illinois), 6-3
Singles
Zach Viiala (Illinois) def. No. 50 Vignesh Gogineni (Yale), 6-0, 1-6, 14-12
Eric Li (Yale) def. Jeremy Zhang (Illinois), 6-3, 6-2
Tyler Bowers (Illinois) def. Jim Ji (Yale), 6-1, 6-3
Mathis Debru (Illinois) def. Dylan Tsoi (Yale), 6-4, 7-6 (5)
Day 2 - Sept. 21
Doubles
No. 84 Benjamin Privara / Masato Perera (Harvard) def. Tyler Bowers / Zach Viiala (Illinois), 6-4
Melchior Delloye / Rohan Murali (Harvard) def. Mathis Debru / Jeremy Zhang (Illinois), 6-3
Singles
No. 68 Benjamin Privara (Harvard) def. Zach Viiala (Illinois), 6-2, 6-3
Tyler Bowers (Illinois) def. Melchior Delloye (Harvard), 6-3, 1-6, 11-9
Masato Perera (Harvard) def. Mathis Debru (Illinois), 7-6(5), 7-6(5)
Jeremy Zhang (Illinois) def. Jayanth Devaiah (Notre Dame), 5-7, 6-2, 10-8
Day 3 - Sept. 22
Doubles
Mathis Debru / Zach Viiala (Illinois) def Rushil Khosla / Petar Teodorovic (Cornell), 6-3
Tyler Bowers / Jeremy Zhang (Illinois) def John Chin / James Van Herzeele (Boise State), 7-6(5)
Singles
Mathis Debru (Illinois) def Noah McDonald (SMU), 7-5, 4-6, 10-7
Jeremy Zhang (Illinois) vs Luis Llorens Saracho (Notre Dame), 7-6(6), 6-2
Zach Viiala (Illinois) def Rodrigo Fernandes (Cornell), 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
Tyler Bowers (Illinois) def John Chin (Boise State), 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
