It came down to the wire, but the Illinois men’s tennis team came out on top.

Illinois defeated No. 16 Stanford 4-3 Tuesday afternoon at the Taube Tennis Center in Stanford, Calif.

The match, which was the last of the Illini’s three-match trip in the Golden State, was one of the most dramatic the Illini have played this season. It was also the first victory at Stanford for either of the Illinois coaches – which “got rid of some demons,” said Illinois associate head coach Brad Dancer.

“It was a mixed bag of results,” Dancer said. “It was a great effort from Chris Martin and Kevin (Anderson), as well as GD (Jones) and Ryler (DeHeart) in doubles.”

The Illini started strong in doubles, clinching the point when Jones, a sophomore, and DeHeart, a junior – the nation’s No. 9-ranked doubles team – upset defending NCAA doubles champions Sam Warburg and KC Corkery 8-6.

“I was pleased with our results – it was good to get revenge on them,” Jones said.

Warburg and Corkery won the last time the doubles teams played each other.

However, Jones said the men did not do anything differently, they just executed better. DeHeart said the Illini’s ability to play well against the Stanford team bodes well for the men’s future, especially with the NCAA doubles tournament quickly approaching.

“It was good to realize that we can compete against anyone else in the country,” DeHeart said.

The reason Jones and DeHeart were so successful, Dancer said, was because the men were extremely focused – once they were able to get a lead, they were able to hold on, despite pressure from their talented opponents.

“Their resiliency and their ability to play well and help the server out was key,” Dancer said.

Although the Illini have struggled with doubles in the past, the point ended up being the deciding factor in the match Tuesday. Stanford and Illinois split the singles results.

Jones and DeHeart, the only Illini who had been undefeated in singles during the team’s trip, suffered losses to Warburg and Corkery. Warburg, the No. 2 singles player in the nation, defeated Jones in straight sets 6-4, 6-0. Corkery topped DeHeart 7-5, 5-7, 6-2.

“We didn’t play that well in singles,” Dancer said. “We should be able to win at the bottom of the lineup and win one of the matches in the top two positions – that they both lost was discouraging.”

Illinois freshman Ruben Gonzales kept the score close, however, beating Phil Kao 6-4, 6-2. Stanford’s Eric McKean kept the Cardinal in the match with a 1-6, 7-6, 6-2 victory over Illini junior Pramod Dabir.

Senior Chris Martin kept the Illini’s hope of victory alive by evening the score at three when he defeated Phil Sheng 4-6, 7-6, 6-3. Martin, whose older brother David was a two-time All-American at Stanford, almost went to Stanford himself, which is why the victory there was even more significant.

“It wasn’t a pretty match either way, but I hung around and took advantage (of it),” Martin said. “The most valuable part of the trip was that we realized how much we need each other to get through the (tough) matches.”

Martin’s victory set up Illinois freshman Anderson, who had been winless in the team’s last two outings, to secure the fourth and final point for the Illini.

“It just so happened that I was the last one on the court,” Anderson said. “There were a lot of other people who were responsible for the win, but it was pretty exciting.”

Anderson knew that his match would be the deciding factor, but it did not affect him much, he said. Instead, he was motivated by his teammates who came over to cheer on his court during the last couple games of the third set.

Illinois returns to the Atkins Tennis Center this weekend for the team’s first home match since February. The Illini take on Ohio State Sunday at noon.

“We’re very excited about the (OSU) match,” Martin said. “This week helped us prepare, we know we can’t take them for granted. The close Stanford match prepared us for the rest of the Big Ten season.”