The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
UCSB
No. 12 Men's Tennis Preview: UCSB, Washington
01.15.2016 | Men's Tennis
Longhorns head west, meet UCSB on neutral site, Washington on its home courts.
WHAT: Fresh off of its season-opening day-night doubleheader sweep, No. 12 Texas (2-0) heads west for a pair of matches in Seattle.
WHEN
Saturday, Jan. 16 – 2 p.m. PT
No. 12 Texas vs. No. 54 UCSB (Cal-Santa Barbara)
Sunday, Jan. 17 – 11 a.m. PT
No. 12 Texas at No. 62 Washington
WHERE:
Nordstrom Tennis Center (The University of Washington), Seattle
LAST TIME OUT
Texas opened the 2016 dual-match season on Tuesday (Jan. 12) with a day-night doubleheader at the Weller Indoor Tennis Center at The University of Texas Golf Club. The Longhorns blanked Abilene Christian (7-0) and defeated Lamar by a 6-1 count. Senior Michael Riechmann, junior George Goldhoff and freshmen Harrison Scott and Julian Zlobinsky all recorded a pair of singles wins in the doubleheader sweep. The Longhorns swept all six doubles matches contested.
LONGHORNS FEATURED IN PRESEASON TEAM, SINGLES AND DOUBLES RANKINGS
Texas opens at No. 12 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) preseason men's tennis team poll, which ranks the nation's top-75 teams. Virginia tops the preseason team poll, which includes three Big 12 schools among the nation's top-five and all six Big 12 men's tennis schools among the nation's top-28 teams.
Freshman Harrison Scott ranks No. 94 in the ITA men's singles rankings after posting a 10-2 fall record and winning the Racquet Club Collegiate Invitational title last September. The Canadian defeated a pair of ranked foes in 82nd-ranked Romain Kalaydjian of San Diego and 73rd-ranked Trevor Johnson of TCU. Scott also ranks 46th in doubles with John Mee.
Senior Michael Riechmann ranks 114th in the ITA men's singles rankings after producing an 11-4 fall singles record. Riechmann opened his fall season by winning the main singles draw at the Rice Invitational. He added a pair of wins at the Porsche Napa Valley Tennis Classic and reached the qualifying singles draw at the ITA All-American Championships.
CENTER RETURNS FOR 16TH SEASON, WELCOMES NEW STAFF
Michael Center returns for his 16th season at the helm of the Texas men's tennis program. The four-time Big 12 Coach of the Year led the Longhorns to their second-straight top-10 final ranking last season as Texas reached the round of 16 at the 2015 NCAA Championships. A pair of Center's pupils reached the pinnacle of their sport last May when Soren Hess-Olesen and Lloyd Glasspool won the first NCAA doubles title for Texas since 1944.
Center turned to a pair of familiar faces to fill the vacancies on his coaching staff. Bruce Berque, who served as a volunteer coach at Texas last season, is in his first season as an associate head coach under Center.
Berque filled the position previously held by longtime associate head coach Ricardo Rubio, who accepted his first head coaching position last summer with The University of Denver men's tennis program.
Berque served 10 seasons (2004-14) as the head men's tennis coach at Michigan and led the Wolverines to the NCAA Championships in his final nine seasons in Ann Arbor. He helped the Illinois men to the 2003 NCAA title during his six-season stint (1999-2004) as an associate head coach for the Fighting Illini.
Chris Camillone, a former ITA doubles All-American at Texas, returns to the Longhorns as a volunteer assistant coach.
MORE ON THE LONGHORNS
Along with the aforementioned Riechmann and Mee, Texas welcomes three additional veterans from the 2015 squad that posted a 21-7 record and finished the season ranked ninth nationally.
George Goldhoff posted a 17-10 singles mark, including an 8-6 record in dual matches last season a junior. Sophomore Adrian Ortiz went 3-2 in dual-match play last season, and redshirt sophomore William Jou added three singles wins as a freshman.
UT also welcomes redshirt freshman Julian Zlobinsky and freshmen Rodrigo Banzer, Johnny Goodwin, Colin Markes and Leonardo Telles along with the freshman Scott.
Texas returns home next weekend and hosts four matches as part of the annual ITA Kick-Off Weekend event.
Players Mentioned
