By Steve Lansdale
AUSTIN, Texas — The No. 2 University of Texas men’s tennis team will host Cal in the round of 16 after UT knocked off No. 37 South Florida, 4-1, Saturday at the Texas Tennis Center. The matchup with the Golden Bears, which will take place at 1 p.m., Saturday, May 11, will mark the Longhorns’ sixth consecutive appearance in the round of 16.
With the victory, UT’s season record improved to 25-3; the Longhorns have won nine of their last 10 matches, and 15 of their last 17. The 25-3 mark is the team’s best through 28 matches since [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]the Longhorns started 26-2 in 2010.
Texas and Cal met in the second round last year, with the Longhorns blanking their guests, 4-0.
To reach the rematch with the Golden Bears, Texas had to overcome losing the doubles point against USF.
“I told these guys that the goal all week was to clear the first hurdle of the tournament and get through the first week and make the sweet 16,” interim coach Bruce Berque said. “I’m happy for them because (of) they put the work in. It got a little hairy after the doubles, but I think we were confident that if the guys came out and competed and played hard on every court (in singles), we’d have a chance to win. This group is experienced and has faced it before, so they did a good job today.”
The Longhorns lost the doubles point to start the match against USF. Chih Chi Huang and Yuya Ito topped USF’s Chase Ferguson and Sergio Gomez Montesa, 6-4, but the pairing of Colin Markes and Leonardo Telles lost to USF’s Ivan Yatsuk and Jakup Wojcik by the same 6-4 score, and the No. 5 team of Harrison Scott and Christian Sigsgaard lost to the No. 88 tandem of Alberto Barroso-Camp and Pierre Luquet.
UT came back strong in singles, winning all four matches that were completed.
No. 12 Ito topped Ferguson, 6-3, 6-4, Scott knocked off Wojcik, 6-1, 6-4, Colin Markes dropped Gomez Montesa and Rodrigo Banzer finished off Yatsuk, 6-1, 7-6 (6-4).
In the other two singles matches, which were stopped once UT clinched the match, Sigsgaard (at No. 1 singles) and Telles (in the third match) each were a game away from victories of their own.
Markes’ victory was his seventh in his last eight matches, and improved his record in dual match singles play to 18-3. Ito’s victory was his team-leading 24th this season, against just three losses.
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