TCU overwhelms Texas Tech, claims wins Big 12 tournament

By Robbie Vaglio

Published Apr 30, 2017

Frogs claim back-to-back titles with 4-0 sweep of Texas Tech

The Frogs capped their dominant performance against Big 12 competition this season with a 4-0 sweep of No. 41 Texas Tech at the Big 12 Tournament to claim their second consecutive Big 12 Tournament championship.

With this accomplishment, TCU became the first team in the Big 12 since 2009 to claim back-to-back regular season and tournament titles.

Cameron Norrie, a native of Auckland, New Zealand, was named Most Outstanding Player for the second straight season – a first-time achievement in conference history. Norrie, the No. 1 ranked singles player in the country, moved to an 11-0 record in the three Big 12 tournaments he has participated in, 6-0 in singles and 5-0 in doubles.

“There’s a lot to be proud of,” Coach David Roditi said. “The guys had to overcome a lot to be here. I’m very proud as the head coach of the Frogs, and very proud to be Big 12 champs.”

It was TCU’s 19th appearance in the conference tournament final, and TCU took the crown for the 15th time. The win marked TCU’s second conference tournament championship under head coach Roditi. It is the eighth instance in program history that TCU has claimed at least a share of the regular season crown and the conference tournament championship.

From the beginning, the Frogs were in control of the match. In doubles play, the No. 33 pair of Jerry Lopez and Reese Stalder were the first pair off the court with a 6-1 victory over the No. 13 pair of Connor Curry and Bjorn Thomson. Norrie and Trevor Johnson secured the doubles point for the Frogs with a 6-2 victory.

In singles action, the Frogs quickly won four first sets. Johnson moved to 5-0 in singles play with a 6-1, 6-3 victory to put the Frogs up 2-0. The Frogs won the final two points almost simultaneously, as both Norrie and Stalder finished on cue. Stalder finished with a 6-0, 6-1 victory; seconds later Norrie clinched the championship for the Frogs with a 6-1, 6-3 victory.

With the win, the Frogs automatically qualify for the 2017 NCAA Championships. The tournament will he held on campus sites from May 12-14 with the team finals and tournaments played from May 18-29 at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia.