Two forehand volleys, an overhead smash and a blazing backhand resolved junior Gavin Young’s turbulent singles performance against Tennessee’s Blaise Bicknell.
After a swift first set win and a shaky second set that Young lost just as quickly, he gave the Wolverines a brief scare against a rallying team of Volunteers. Nevertheless, Young rallied and made four point-winning plays to cap the No. 5 Michigan men’s tennis team’s seemingly smooth 4-1 win over No. 6 Tennessee.
“Posting a set on the board helped the other guys finish their first sets,” Young said. “I lost concentration in the second … my first serve percentage was down, but I thought I was able to regroup and come out with a lot of energy in the third set.”
Young’s up-and-down performance highlighted Michigan’s peaks and valleys against Tennessee.
After opening his singles match with a break, Young didn’t look back — not relinquishing his lead and closing the set with a forehand shot that popped off his racquet. His teammates followed suit: five of six Wolverines won their first sets, allowing Michigan’s path to victory to seem clearly open.
But Young’s poor start in his next set — as he fell behind 3-0 — served as the precursor to tight second set scores that gave the Volunteers apt room to mount a comeback. Bicknell looked to spark Tennessee’s path to victory by holding serve in three consecutive service games to close the set, 6-2.
Shortly after senior Ondrej Styler and fifth-year Patrick Maloney delivered the Wolverines a 3-0 lead, fifth-year Andrew Fenty lost his second set to give the Volunteers their first point of the match — and a glimmer of hope. Owning a 3-1 lead, Michigan turned to Young to bounce back from his second set loss and clinch the match.
“I talked to (Young) after the second set and asked him, ‘What won you the first set?’ ” Michigan coach Adam Steinberg said. “He mentioned two or three things … and I thought he played great in the third.”
Young replicated his early success to open the third set and broke twice to lead, 4-1. Two holds later, Young finished the set, 6-2, and gave the Wolverines their match-clinching point.
“It was an absolute dogfight from the very first second of doubles where it could have really gone either way,” Young said. “The doubles was a great momentum booster for us heading into singles.”
Young established himself from the beginning of his doubles match too, as he showcased his serving prowess with an ace to take a 2-1 lead and back-to-back aces to extend a 5-2 lead. To close his doubles match with Fenty, Young finished consecutive winners at the net to open up the scoreboard for Michigan.
“(Fenty) and I are a really good combo because he’s great at certain things I’m not as strong at (and vice-versa),” Young said. “I know I can always count on his return, and it helps my return game too.”
Coming off a season when he was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Young’s upward trajectory can help the Wolverines amplify their success from last year.
“For the goals we have — to be No. 1 (in the country) — we have to take a step forward every day,” Steinberg said.
And in the big moments, Young exemplified why Michigan will need him to get there.