Men's tennis falls in finals

Rice vs. UTSA: 2-4

Despite entering the Conference USA tournament as the No. 1 seed and favorite to win, the Rice University men’s tennis team could not overcome the University of Texas, San Antonio in the championship match. Rice bypassed the first round with a bye and defeated the University of North Carolina, Charlotte 4-2 in the semifinals. UTSA automatically earned a spot in the NCAA tournament with their 4-2 win.

Even though Rice lost to UTSA in the regular season, the Owls managed to earn the first seed in the tournament. Rice faced off against Charlotte on April 18 and in the C-USA semifinals on April 18 in Norfolk, Virginia. Singles victories from sophomores Max Andrews and David Warren and junior Adam Gustafsson helped seal the victory. Freshman Jamie Malik and junior Gustavo Gonzalez were defeated in their singles matches. Senior Srikar Alla did not need to finish his game due to the Rice victory. The doubles pairs of Warren and Andrews and Gustafsson and Gonzalez also won their games. Malik and sophomore Zach Yablon, however, lost their doubles match. Head Coach Efe Ustundag said winning the doubles point was a pivotal development in Rice’s victory. “We knew going in that Charlotte was going to battle us every step of the way, but the key would be the doubles point,” Ustundag said. “Even with that, we got off to a fairly shaky start. We got down breaks on all three courts, and maybe some of that was just nerves. But we got past that and turned it around to set the tone for the rest of the match.”

On Sunday, April 19, Rice lost the Conference USA title game to UTSA. Unlike on Saturday, the team could not win the doubles point. The teams of Malik-Yablon and Gustafsson-Gonzalez lost their doubles matchups. Warren and Andrews did not finish their game. In the singles portion of the matches, Alla, Malik and Gonzalez each lost to their opponents. Despite victories from Andrews, Gustafsson and Warren, Rice could not pull away for the victory and Conference USA title. Ustundag said losing the doubles point was key in the loss and that UTSA simply outplayed them. “UTSA was just better than us in doubles today,” Ustundag said. “We were better on three singles courts and they were better on the other three, but we could not overcome the loss in doubles. They were the better team today.” The Owls’ overall record for the season is 12- 14. Alla is the only graduating member, and the tennis team will look to reload and improve upon their success for the 2016 season.