WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Oskar Antinheimo had been in the exact position he was late Friday night before. The only thing making this time different was the stakes.

With the Elon University men's tennis team deadlocked at 3-3 against No. 6 seeded Campbell in its CAA Tournament quarterfinal bout, Antinheimo was the last man on court for the Phoenix. After splitting the first two sets of his contest at No. 3 singles, the sophomore needed to win the final set to keep Elon's season alive. 

Antinheimo has been clutch for the Phoenix this season. On Feb. 22 against Gardner-Webb, he saved a match point in the third set with an incredible passing shot and ultimately went on to be the decisive point in a dramatic 4-3 victory. Then, on March 25 at No. 68 William & Mary, Antinheimo delivered in crunch time again, this time holding on in a second-set breaker to clinch a 4-3 Elon win. 

During a changeover early in the final set Friday, head coach Michael Leonard approached Antinheimo and reminded him "this is the stuff you love." Having been in this situation before, Antinheimo knew to stay loose and have fun despite the mounting pressure. 

"I enjoy playing in these moments," Antinheimo said. "I don't know what else you can do. Just enjoy it."
 

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Antinheimo did not enjoy the ninth game of the final set, as Lukas Steffen of Campbell converted a deuce point to break serve and go ahead 5-4. However, just as he has done when faced with adversity all season, the sophomore fought back in the next game, taking a deuce point of his own to save a match point and even the score at 5-5. 

With his teammates and coaches anxiously looking on from the adjacent court, Antinheimo consolidated the break to go up 6-5. Steffen answered with a hold of his own to take the set into a winner-take-all tiebreak. 

Steffen built early momentum in the breaker and went up 5-3. Antinheimo responded by winning the next two points to tie the score. After Steffen won the 11th point of the tiebreak to set up a second match point, Antinheimo returned to the baseline to serve. He put his first serve in play and it didn't come back over the net, as the sophomore saved a second match point to knot the score at 6-6. 

"I hit a good serve," Antinheimo said. "I was serving pretty well and trusted my serve and played aggressive." 

The players swapped sides after Antinheimo's second escape of the night. Antinheimo won the next point to set up a match point of his own at 7-6. On the fourth shot of the ensuing point, Antinheimo lobbed Steffen and watched as the ball floated to the ground for a winner.

When the ball hit the ground, Antinheimo threw his hat and racket to the ground as his teammates rushed to celebrate with him. 

"It was crazy," Antinheimo said. "I really like this team. [We're a] very, very close group of guys and I love that we can still compete tomorrow and have a chance to win the whole tournament."
 

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Although Antinheimo was the clinching point, he was not the only pivotal part of Elon's comeback. On the other set of three courts at William & Mary's McCormack & Nagelsen Indoor Tennis Center, Juan Sengariz battled through a three-set match of his own and Dylan Heap won a crucial first-set tiebreak to spark a straight-sets win. Elon also won a momentous doubles point thanks to a victory by Sengariz and partner Ben Zipay. 

"I'm so, so happy for all the guys and how everyone else put [in] so much effort," Antinheimo said. "Everyone is a very good competitor and just loves to fight and everyone is ready to put extra effort to play for this team."

Antinheimo's flare for the dramatic has rescued Elon on multiple occasions before Friday. But his unforgettable fightback against the Camels left even him speechless.

"Crazy, crazy match," Antinheimo said. "What can I say?"
 

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'Rising Phoenix' is a new student-led initiative to cover Elon Athletics. Through innovative content creation and storytelling, Elon University students will have the opportunity to highlight the moments, people and events that make an impact, leveraging the athletic department's various web and social media platforms for distribution. Follow Rising Phoenix on Twitter (@EURisingPhoenix) and Instagram (@elonrisingphoenix). Interested in joining this initiative as a content creator (video, graphics, writing, storytelling, or more)? Contact Jacob Kisamore at jkisamore@elon.edu.

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