CROWN ‘EM!! TCU Men’s Tennis earns Indoor National Championship

The Frogs defeated a number of highly ranked opponents to earn the ‘Ship.

TCU Athletics took home a National Championship Monday afternoon when Men’s Tennis defeated Tennessee to take home the Indoor National title.

It was the fourth consecutive appearance for the Horned Frogs in the Indoor Championships, but the first victory for David Roditi’s squad. The breakthrough is a culmination of years of close calls for the program, who has been knocking on the door for several seasons.

TCU came into the tournament, held at the University of Washington in Seattle, as the fifth seed in the 16 team field. They opened with Virginia, dispatching the Cavaliers 4-2 in a rematch taking place just a week after the two teams squared off in Fort Worth. Next up was rival Texas, who upset the four seed in the opening round of the weekend. TCU dispatched the Longhorns with ease, sweeping the doubles and singles points. “Anytime you beat Texas, it’s a good day for the Frogs,” head coach David Roditi said after the match.

The eight consecutive victory for TCU — and fifth over a ranked opponent — earned the Frogs a date with #1 seed Ohio State, and the two programs would battle to the final match. Junior Sander Jong prevailed 6-0 on court three to send his team to the championship for the first time since 1992 with a 6-0 domination in the final set over Ohio State’s Jake Van Emburgh, bouncing back from a 6-7 (3-7) second set.

Roditi told the media after the victory over the Buckeyes that “we’re ready to battle for the national title” and he wasn’t lying , as the Frogs came out with something to prove Monday. Pedro Vives was the hero in the final, overcoming a loss in the opening set with back to back 6-4 decisions. Luc Fomba, Jong, and Jake Fearnley also earned points in singles for the Frogs. Fomba and Fearnley earned the doubles point as well.

At the conclusion of Vives’ match, the celebration was on:

TCU Tennis moved to 12-1 overall, defeating two number one teams and eight ranked opponents overall. The title is the first national championship for Dave Roditi, one of the final feathers in the cap of one of the best coaches in TCU Athletics history.

Now, they’ll try and repeat the feat during the outdoor season, which begins Wednesday when the program hosts Michigan in Fort Worth on the purple courts.