The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Rice
No. 1 Men’s Tennis sweeps Rice, 4-0
01.25.2025 | Men's Tennis
With the win, the Longhorns advance to the championship match of the ITA Kickoff Weekend Austin Regional.
Austin – No. 1 Texas Men's Tennis swept Rice, 4-0, at the Texas Tennis Center on Saturday, advancing to the championship match of the ITA Kickoff Weekend Austin Regional. The Longhorns will face Georgia Tech on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT.
Texas took the doubles point with wins at Nos. 1 and 2 and continued with singles victories from freshman No. 3 Timo Legout at No. 1, junior No. 2 Sebastian Gorzny at No. 2, and freshman Sebastian Eriksson at No. 5, who clinched the sweep of the overall match.
Following doubles, Legout got things going quickly in singles with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Arthus de la Bassetiere to give Texas the 2-0 lead.
Legout broke first to go up 2-1, and although Bassetiere broke back on a deuce point to even it, Legout set out on a 6-0 run to take the first set and establish a 2-0 lead in the second. Bassetiere got one game back on a hold, but Legout closed on a 4-0 that included two deuce-point breaks for the win.
Gorzny extended the Longhorns lead 3-0 with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Petro Kuzmunok. Gorzny started off the first set breaking on a deuce point, then held in the next game, and after Kuzmunok also held, he got the break back to even it, 2-2. Gorzny responded with another break to retake the lead and consolidated for 4-2, and after the following two games were held, Gorzny broke again for the set. In the second, the first seven games stayed on serve, including the last two of those at deuce, for a 4-3 lead for Gorzny. He then got the break he needed and consolidated on a deuce point to take the match.
The clinch came when Eriksson defeated Tommy Czaplinkski, 6-4, 6-2. In the first set, Eriksson produced the first break on a deuce point for a 3-2 lead that he extended to 4-2 on serve. That began a streak of five-straight holds between the players, despite the last three of those being decided at deuce, giving Eriksson the set. After Czaplinkski held his opening serve of the second set, the next two games went to deuce but also resulted in holds for a 2-1 lead for Czaplinkski. However, it was all Eriksson from there as he finished on a 5-0 run to take his match and give Texas the overall win.
The remaining singles matches went unfinished with the Longhorns holding leads on all three courts. Freshman Oliver Ojakaar was one game away from a win, leading Kabeer Kapasi, 6-3, 5-4, at No. 4. Ojakaar picked up a break in the opening game, which he consolidated for a 2-0 lead, and after Kapasi held on a deuce point and got the break back to even it, Ojakaar went on a 3-0 run that included two breaks for a 5-2 lead. Despite Kapasi getting one of the breaks back in the next game, Ojakaar captured the set with a final break. In the second set, each player held his opening serve and then each broke on a deuce point for 2-2. The next three games were all holds until Ojakaar broke for a 5-3 lead. Kapasi then answered the break for 5-4 before play halted.
Sophomore No. 116 Lucas Brown was also leading Yair Sarouk, 6-4, 4-3, when play stopped. Brown opened the first set with a deuce-point hold and pushed out to a 3-0 lead with a break and another hold. Sarouk then held on a deuce point, and after the next two games stayed on serve, he reclaimed the break on a deuce point for 4-3 and consolidated to even it, 4-4. Brown then held to regain the lead before breaking to secure the set. The first three games of the second set stayed on serve starting with Brown until he broke for a 3-1 lead. However, Sarouk answered the break, and the last two games stayed on serve to the final.
In the last match, junior No. 20 Jonah Braswell was leading Emir Sendogan, 6-4, 3-0, at No. 3 at the finish. After Braswell held his opening serve, Sendogan claimed three consecutive deuce-point wins for 3-1. The next three games were all holds, including the last one on a deuce point for Braswell, which started a 7-0 run for him to the finish. That included two more deuce points, which he used to take the first set, 6-4, and for 3-0 in the second.
Earlier in doubles, the No. 7 duo of Brown and Legout was first off the court with a 6-0 sweep of Bassetiere and Kapasi at No. 1. Only one game during the match reached deuce, which was for a 3-0 lead.
Gorzny and Ojakaar then secured the doubles point with a 6-2 win over Santiago Navarro and Kuzmenok at No. 2. The Longhorns broke to begin the match and then broke again on a deuce point for 5-2 before serving out the win.
The Texas duo won the first two games then lost the third, making it 2-1. However, Texas went on to win the next 2 games leading the Rice duo 4-2. To secure the doubles point, the Longhorns held on a deuce point going up 5-2, then won the next game beating Rice 6-2.
In the remaining doubles match, Braswell and Eriksson were leading over Eduardo Morias and Joshua Mandelbaum, 5-2, at No. 3. The Longhorns broke twice in the first three games for a 3-0 lead, and although the Owls got a break back for 3-1, Texas reclaimed it on a deuce point and held for 5-1. Rice then grabbed the final game on a deuce-point break.
Texas will next play Georgia Tech in the regional championship match on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT at the either the Texas Tennis Center or the Weller Indoor Tennis Center with that location to be determined that morning depending on weather conditions.
#1 Texas 4, Rice 0
Singles – Order of Finish (1,2,5)
1. #3 Timo Legout (TEX) def. A. de la Bassetiere (RICE) 6-2, 6-1
2. #2 Sebastian Gorzny (TEX) def. Petro Kuzmenok (RICE) 6-3, 6-3
3. #20 Jonah Braswell (TEX) vs. Emir Sendogan (RICE) 6-4, 3-0, unf.
4. Oliver Ojakaar (TEX) vs. Kabeer Kapasi (RICE) 6-3, 5-4, unf.
5. Sebastian Eriksson (TEX) def. Tommy Czaplinski (RICE) 6-4, 6-2
6. #116 Lucas Brown (TEX) vs. Yair Sarouk (RICE) 6-4, 4-3, unf.
Doubles – Order of Finish (1,2)
1. #7 Lucas Brown/Timo Legout (TEX) def. #43 A. de la Bassetiere/Kabeer Kapasi (RICE) 6-0
2. Sebastian Gorzny/Oliver Ojakaar (TEX) def. Santiago Navarro/Petro Kuzmenok (RICE) 6-2
3. Jonah Braswell/Sebastian Eriksson (TEX) vs. #118 Eduardo Morais/Joshua Mandelbaum (RICE) 5-2, unf.
Players Mentioned
