STANFORD, Calif. - With the weight of the Big Slam on his shoulders – and No. 28 Cal and No. 24 Stanford tied at 3-3 - freshman Billy Griffith fought off Cardinal junior Nolan Paige to win, 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4, on court five and hand the Golden Bears the 4-3 victory on Saturday at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium.
Cal's win snapped Stanford's 10-match winning streak and prevented the Cardinal from taking sole possession of the regular-season Pac-12 title; Stanford shares it with USC.
The Bears improved their overall record to 17-7 and finished with a 5-2 conference record after splitting its season series with Stanford (16-5, 6-1 Pac-12). On Feb. 21, the Cardinal beat Cal, 4-3, in a nonconference match in Berkeley.
“Cal-Stanford matches have amazing endings these days,” Cal head coach Peter Wright said. “Today it was freshman Billy Griffith who returned to the lineup for his first match in three weeks. He kept his composure to win a thrilling third set with a rowdy Stanford crowd cheering in the background."
Griffith's win was his first singles victory since he won twice on Feb. 22 against UC Santa Barbara and Saint Mary's.
“Overall, some redemption for our team as I thought we played well last weekend against USC and UCLA but didn't come away with a win," Wright added. "Today we came from behind after losing the doubles point, and it was a tremendous team effort.”
On Saturday, Cal fell behind 1-0 when both of its nationally ranked doubles teams lost. First the 44th-ranked pair of seniors Gregory Bayane and Chase Melton fell on court one to the 22nd-ranked John Morrissey/Robert Stineman, 6-2. Stanford clinched the doubles point when Paige and David Wilczynski upset the 73rd-ranked duo of junior Oskar Wikberg and sophomore Andre Goransson, 6-4.
In singles, Goransson, ranked 35th, posted an upset of his own when he beat the 31st-ranked Tom Fawcett, 7-5, 6-0, on court one to tie the overall match at 1-1. The Swedish sophomore has played well of late, with results including an upset of then-No. 6 Yannick Hanfmann, 6-4, 6-1, in Cal's match with USC and a 1-6, 7-5, 6-1, win over Oregon's Daan Maasland.
The Cardinal took back the lead at 2-1 when David Hsu topped Cal junior Mads Engsted, 7-6(1), 6-0, on court six.
Another Cal freshman came through in a clutch situation as J.T. Nishimura edged Stineman – a Stanford senior – 7-5, 7-5, on court four, and then Wikberg bested Wilczynski, 6-3, 6-3, on court three to give Cal a 3-1 lead.
On court two, sophomore Filip Bergevi – ranked 91st – opened his match with John Morrissey with a first-set win. But the 60th-ranked Stanford senior prevailed, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, to tie the match at 3-3 and set up court five to settle the Big Slam.
Cal next plays in the Pac-12 Championships slated for April 22-26 in Ojai, California.
No. 28 California (17-7, 5-2 Pac-12) defeated No. 24 Stanford (16-5, 6-1 Pac-12) – 4-3
April 18, 2015, in Stanford, Calif.
Taube Family Tennis Stadium
Doubles
1) No. 22 John Morrissey/Robert Stineman (Stanford) def. No. 44 Gregory Bayane/Chase Melton (Cal) – 6-2
2) Tom Fawcett/Maciek Romanowicz (Stanford) vs. Filip Bergevi/Mads Engsted (Cal) – Abandoned
3) Nolan Paige/David Wilczynski (Stanford) def. No. 73 Andre Goransson/Oskar Wikberg (Cal) – 6-4
Stanford won the doubles point
Order of Finish: 1, 3*
*Clinched the doubles point
Singles
1) No. 35 Andre Goransson (Cal) def. No. 31 Tom Fawcett (Stanford) – 7-5, 6-0
2) No. 60 John Morrissey (Stanford) def. No. 91 Filip Bergevi (Cal) – 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
3) Oskar Wikberg (Cal) def. David Wilczynski (Stanford) – 6-3, 6-3
4) J.T. Nishimura (Cal) def. Robert Stineman (Stanford) – 7-5, 7-5
5) Billy Griffith (Cal) def. Nolan Paige (Stanford) – 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-4
6) David Hsu (Stanford) def. Mads Engsted (Cal) – 7-6(1), 6-0
Order of Finish: 1, 6, 4, 3, 2, 5^
^Clinched the overall match
