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No. 4 Men’s Tennis preview: ITA National Indoor Championships
02.13.2020 | Men's Tennis
The third-seeded Longhorns open with 14 seed No. 16 UCLA on Friday at 9 a.m. in Madison, Wisc.
No. 4 Men's Tennis preview: ITA National Indoor Championships
3 seed No. 4 Texas vs. 14 seed No. 16 UCLA
When: Fri., Feb. 14, 2020, 9 a.m. CT
Where: Nielsen Tennis Stadium, Madison, Wisc.
Live Video
Live Stats
Tournament Central
Complete Bracket/Schedule
Notes
-UCLA Series: UCLA leads, 8-1
Texas and UCLA have met nine times dating back to 1975 with the Bruins having won eight of those meetings, however the Longhorns won the most recent matchup which came in the 2008 NCAA Semifinals. No. 7 Texas downed No. 3 UCLA, 4-2, and advanced to its first NCAA Finals appearance.
Last Meeting
No. 7 Texas 4, No. 3 UCLA 2
NCAA Men's Tennis Championship - Semifinals
Michael D. Case Tennis Center - Tulsa, Okla.
Singles - Order of Finish (3,5,4,6,1)
1. No. 10 Dimitar Kutrovsky (UT) def. No. 23 Harel Srugo (UCLA), 3-6, 6-2, 6-3
2. Kellen Damico (UT) vs. Holden Seguso (UCLA), 6-4, 5-7, 2-2, unf.
3. No. 40 Mathieu Dehaine (UCLA) def. No. 47 Ed Corrie (UCLA), 6-4, 6-2
4. Luis Diaz Barriga (UT) def. Michael Look (UCLA), 6-3, 1-6, 6-2
5. Jeremy Drean (UCLA) def. Milan Mihailovic (UT), 7-6 (3), 6-2
6. Miguel Reyes Varela (UT) def. Nick Meister (UCLA), 3-6, 6-3, 6-0
Doubles - Order of Finish (3,2)
1. No. 42 Nick Meister/Harel Srugo (UCLA) vs. Ed Corrie/Kellen Damico (UT), unf.
2. No. 53 Diaz Barriga/Reyes Varela (UT) def. Dehaine/Seguso (UCLA), 8-6
3. Kutrovsky/Zavala (UT) def. Drean/Look (UCLA), 8-5
-Texas vs UCLA in 2019 tournament play
N/A
-Ranked No. 4
Texas is ranked No. 4 in the latest Oracle/Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Rankings released Feb. 5 by the ITA. It marks the 16th-straight week the Longhorns have been ranked in the top four dating back last February. Texas had been ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in the last eight polls, but suffered its first loss since last season at No. 6 Ohio State on Feb. 1.
- ITA Individual National Rankings
Texas
Singles
No. 2 Yuya Ito
No. 12 Christian Sigsgaard
No. 37 Siem Woldeab
Doubles
No. 11 Christian Sigsgaard/Siem Woldeab
No. 15 Yuya Ito/Christian Sigsgaard
No. 59 Yuya Ito/Siem Woldeab
UCLA
Singles
No. 6 Keegan Smith
No. 10 Govind Nanda
Doubles
N/A
-Back at the ITA Indoors
The Longhorns are back at the ITA National Indoor Championships for the second-straight year and the third time in the last four. Last season, Texas advanced to the semifinals for the second time in program history with the other coming in 2010, both of which came after defeating USC in the quarterfinals. The Longhorns also defeated host Illinois last year in the first round before falling to eventual champion Ohio State in the semifinals.
-Climbing the charts
Seniors Yuya Ito and Christian Sigsgaard are both rising in the all-time career singles victories list at Texas. Ito is now tied for ninth with 104, while Sigsgaard is tied for 13th with 99. Among the top 15, Ito has posted the best winning percentage (.765), while Sigsgaard's is third (.723).
-Downing the Dawgs
Texas finished out the first part of its schedule heading into ITA Indoor Nationals with a 4-3 win over No. 18 Georgia at the Texas Tennis Center on Feb. 8. It marked the first time the storied programs had met in Austin since 1999, and only the fifth time since 1975 with all four previous matches won by the Bulldogs. Texas ended that streak by claiming the doubles point at both No. 1 and No. 3 by seniors No. 15 Yuya Ito and Christian Sigsgaard, and the duo of sophomore Chih Chi Huang and freshman Cleeve Harper, respectively. That was followed by singles victories for freshmen Eliot Spizzirri at No. 4, and No. 37 Siem Woldeab at No. 3, along with the clinching point by No. 12 Sigsgaard at No. 2. The clinch came with the Longhorns leading, 4-2.
-Ito tabbed Big 12 Player of the Week again
Yuya Ito was named Big 12 Men's Tennis Player of the Week for the week ending Feb. 2. It was Ito's second conference weekly honor of the season and the sixth of his career, which ties him for the most in Big 12 history with teammate Christian Sigsgaard among others. It was also the third time a Longhorn earned the honor in first four weeks of the season after Sigsgaard did the second week. Playing on the road at No. 6 Ohio State, Ito downed No. 24 John McNally in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3.
-Berque chosen PTR College Coach of the Year
Bruce Berque was named the PTR Jim Verdieck College Coach of the Year, the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) announced Feb. 5. Berque will be recognized when the PTR presents its annual awards during its International Tennis Symposium, which will be held Feb. 10-13, on Hilton Head Island, S.C. However, he will be unable to attend in person due to preparation for the Longhorns' appearance in the ITA National Indoor Championships in Madison, Wisc., next week.
-10-match streak snapped
The Longhorns dropped their first dual match of the season on the road, 4-1, at No. 6 Ohio State on Feb. 1. The loss ended a 10-match winning streak dating back to last season that included the six wins of the NCAA Tournament and the first four of the 2020 season.
-ITA Kickoff Weekend
The Longhorns advanced to the ITA National Indoor Championships for the second-straight year by recording 4-0 sweeps against Indiana in the opening round and No. 21 Florida State in the championship. Freshmen Siem Woldeab and Eliot Spizzirri both posted 2-0 singles records to score for Texas, while the Longhorns won the doubles point in both matches. Senior Yuya Ito and sophomore Chih Chi Huang provided the other singles wins.
-Sigsgaard named Big 12 Player of the Week
Christian Sigsgaard was named Big 12 Men's Tennis Player of the Week for the week ending Jan. 20. It marked Sigsgaard's first conference weekly honor of the season and tied a Big 12 record with the sixth of his career. It was also the second-straight week a Longhorn earned the honor after Yuya Ito did so in the first week.
-Ito dominant
No. 2 Yuya Ito had won 18 consecutive singles matches prior to falling to No. 28 Trent Bryde of Georgia on Feb. 8. He has still won 21 of his last 23, and 29 out of his last 32 counting tournament play and dating back to last season. Of the 29 wins, 18 have been against ranked opponents with only two of those coming against players outside of the top 50, while nine of them have been in the top 25. HIs only loss since beginning fall play has been to teammate Siem Woldeab in the championship of the Gamecock Invitational.
-Completing the circuit
Texas finished their extended road trip with a 6-1 win at SMU on Jan. 18 after winning at No. 1 Florida and competing in individual play at the Miami Invitational. The Longhorns swept the singles matches over the Mustangs without dropping a set in a match played indoors at the SMU Tennis Center in Dallas. After dropping the doubles point on a tiebreaker, the Texas singles lineup rebounded with wins from senior No. 13 Christian Sigsgaard, and freshmen Jacob Bullard, No. 53 Siem Woldeab and Cleeve Harper to clinch the match, followed by freshman Eliot Spizzirri and senior No. 2 Yuya Ito to close for the 6-1 final.
-Taking down No. 1
Texas opened the 2020 team season with a 5-2 win on the road at No. 1 Florida on Jan. 15 in Gainesville. The Longhorns used five singles victories, all against ranked opponents, to secure a win in their first dual match since capturing the 2019 National Championship. It was also their second-straight win over a top-ranked team after defeating No. 1 Ohio State in Austin last March. Last season's championship match, a 4-1 win over Wake Forest, also took place in the state of Florida (Orlando) and followed a similar script. Texas dropped the doubles point and trailed in several singles matches before mounting comebacks, highlighted by senior Yuya Ito rebounding from a first-set defeat to earn a three-set win and clinch. It also marked the second time Texas and Florida met in the last three overall matches for the Longhorns, as they faced the Gators last year in the national semifinals, a match which the Longhorns won, 4-2.
-Freshman debuts
Four freshmen made their dual match debuts at No. 1 Florida, including Siem Woldeab at No. 3 singles (win), January enrollee Eliot Spizzirri at No. 4 singles (win) and No. 2 doubles (loss), redshirt freshman Cleeve Harper at No. 6 singles (loss) and No. 3 doubles (loss), and Jacob Bullard at No. 2 doubles (loss). The matches were highlighted by singles comebacks from Woldeab and Spizzirri, who both recovered from 5-1 first-set deficits to win their matches with Woldeab winning his first set and Spizzirri rallying but falling short in his, but recovering to win the second and third sets.
-Ito named Big 12 Player of the Week
Yuya Ito was named Big 12 Men's Tennis Player of the Week for the week ending Jan. 13. It marked Ito's first conference weekly honor of the season and the fifth of his career.
-Miami Spring Invitational
The Longhorns put together a solid showing at the Miami Spring Invitational, winning 31 of 42 total matches in individual singles and doubles play versus members of host Miami, t-No. 19 Georgia, and Wisconsin from Jan. 10-12. The No. 4 duo of seniors Yuya Ito and Christian Sigsgaard went 2-0 in doubles play and earned Doubles MVP honors. Ito did not compete on the final day of the tournament, but picked up two singles wins, including one over No. 12 Philip Henning of Georgia. Sigsgaard closed his singles play on Sunday with a win over No. 63 Adria Soriano Barrera of Miami, while freshman Jacob Bullard secured a ranked win over No. 88 Blake Croyder of Georgia. Bullard also went 3-0 in doubles, as did freshman Evin McDonald. Sophomore Nevin Arimilli and freshman Cleeve Harper both went 3-0 in best-of-three set singles matches, while freshman Eshan Talluri also posted a 3-0 singles record that included two one-set victories. Sophomore Chih Chi Huang and freshmen Eliot Spizzirri and Siem Woldeab all went 2-1 in doubles, while Woldeab also posted a 2-1 singles mark with his only loss coming in a third-set tiebreaker.
-Challenging non-conference schedule
The Longhorns have 11 non-conference dual matches this season against teams that appear in the ITA national rankings either currently or when the matches were played, including home matches with No. 8 Stanford (Feb. 28), No. 9 Columbia (Mar. 14), No. 18 Georgia (W, Feb. 8), and No. 21 Florida State (W, Jan. 26), and road or neutral contests at No. 1 Florida (W, Jan. 15), at No. 1 USC (Mar. 17), at No. 6 Ohio State (L, Feb. 1), at No. 10 NC State (Mar. 1), vs. No. 16 UCLA, vs. RV Harvard (Mar. 20) and at RV San Diego (Mar. 22).
-Defending National Champions
The Longhorns entered the season as the defending National Champions and feature one of the top duos in college tennis in seniors Christian Sigsgaard and Yuya Ito. Sophomore Chih Chi Huang also returns with significant experience in both the singles and doubles lineups, in addition to sophomore Nevin Arimilli and redshirt freshman Cleeve Harper. That group will be joined by a host of talented newcomers who composed the nation's top-ranked recruiting class in fall participants Jacob Bullard, Evin McDonald, Eshan Talluri and Siem Woldeab, along with January enrollee Eliot Spizzirri. Head coach Bruce Berque enters his second season after guiding Texas to its first team championship in school history.
-3-for-3
During the fall, the ITA instituted its newly-created UTR/ITA National Player of the Month honor. In the three months of competition where it was awarded, it was a Longhorn who took it home all three times with freshman Siem Woldeab receiving it in September, and senior Yuya Ito doing so in October and November.
-One of only three
Senior Yuya Ito won both the ITA National Fall Championships singles and the ITA All-American Championships singles title during the fall. In doing so, he became just the third men's player since 1979 to win those two tournaments in the same season, joining Mitchell Frank of Virginia in 2011 and Sargis Sargsian of Arizona State in 1994. Ito ended the fall 15-1 in singles with a 12-match winning streak, and 11-1 in doubles.
-Bringing home the fall hardware
Yuya Ito
ITA Fall National Championships – Singles Champion
ITA All-American Championships – Singles Champion
ITA Texas Regionals – Doubles Champion (Christian Sigsgaard)
Gamecock Fall Invitational – Doubles Champion (Siem Woldeab)
Gamecock Fall Invitational – Singles Finalist
Christian Sigsgaard
ITA Texas Regionals – Doubles Champion (Yuya Ito)
Southern Intercollegiate Championships – Singles Champion
Southern Intercollegiate Championships – Doubles Champion (Siem Woldeab)
Siem Woldeab
Southern Intercollegiate Championships – Doubles Champion (Christian Sigsgaard)
Gamecock Fall Invitational – Singles Champion
Gamecock Fall Invitational – Doubles Champion (Yuya Ito)
-Year Three at the Texas Tennis Center
Texas began its third season of play at the Texas Tennis Center with two wins in the ITA Kickoff Weekend over Indiana and No. 21 Florida State, followed by a victory over No. 18 Georgia after compiling a 25-3 record during the first two years. The Longhorns finished 2019 with a 15-1 mark there, including wins over No. 1 Ohio State, No. 6 Baylor and No. 12 Columbia, along with three NCAA Tournament victories. The lone loss came to No. 15 USC. During its inaugural season, Texas posted a 10-2 record, including winning the 2018 Big 12 Tournament.
Players Mentioned
