Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Thursday, March 10
Tampa, Fla.
10:00 a.m.
Middle Tennessee
4
at
3
South Florida
Motl Clinches the 10th-Straight Victory for the Blue Raiders in Thrilling Fashion
3/11/2022 12:21:00 AM | Men's Tennis
TAMPA, Fla. – No. 23 Middle Tennessee men's tennis (16-3, 1-0) defeats No. 65 USF (5-6) in a close contest Thursday afternoon by a score of 4-3 at the USF Varsity Tennis Courts.
"The guys showed great fight again today. We did not play well at a number of spots and moments, but we battled and found a way to win," Head Coach Jimmy Borendame said. "I love this teams fight and won't go away attitude. We will work on things the next few days and prepare for a dangerous Tennessee Tech team and Bellarmine squad." Borendame said.
With the win, the Blue Raiders have now won 10 matches in a row dating back to Feb. 6. In that span, MT has defeated five ranked opponents, six power 5 opponents, and won the prestigious 74th Annual Blue Gray National Tennis Classic.
Middle Tennessee dropped the doubles point to USF to open the match; the Blue Raiders have now dropped the doubles point in their last two matches. Prior to the last two matches against Oklahoma State and USF, MT had won 16 of their previous 18 doubles points over opponents.
The Graduate Student duo of Chris Edge and Stepan Holis were the only Raiders who picked up a doubles win, defeating Alvin Tudorical and Sergio Gomez Montesa at 6-3 to move to 14-3 on the season as a pair.
In singles, the Bulls' rode their momentum from doubles and picked up a win over No. 101 Edge in two sets at 6-4, 6-2. He moves to 15-3 on the season and his loss was the second time he has fell in straight sets this year.
Middle Tennessee would rally on court Nos. 1 and 2 consisting of No. 69 Francisco Rocha and No. 115 Stijn Slump to equalize the match at two. Both Blue Raiders won in straight sets, Rocha dominated Chase Ferguson at 6-0, 6-2 on the top court and Slump triumphed over Muniz-Hidalgo at 6-4, 6-2.
Zasova, Czech Republic product Holis gave MT the 3-2 advantage with a three-set victory over Montesa.
USF would strike-back moments later, taking down Oskar Brostrom Poulsen on court No. 5 in three sets to tie the match yet again at three.
Pavel Motl clinched the match and sealed a victory for the Blue Raiders at 4-3 with two-straight aces over Bruno Oliveira. In finished matches, Motl has now won five-straight and has clinched the win for MT twice in that span.
Next Up
Middle Tennessee will return to Murfreesboro after a two-week hiatus away from home. The Blue Raiders will take on regional foe Tennessee Tech and Bellarmine on Sunday, March 13 at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. inside the Adams Tennis Complex. Admission is free inside the ATC for the duration of the season.
Doubles Competition
1. Rithvik Bollipalli/Bruno Oliveira (USF) def. #47 Oskar Brostrom Poulsen/Francisco Rocha (MTSU), 6-1
2. Chase Ferguson/Manuel Goncalves (USF) def. Stijn Slump/Pavel Motl (MTSU), 6-2
3. Chris Edge/Stepan Holis (MTSU) def. Alvin Tudorical/Serio Gomez Montesa (USF), 6-3
Order of finish: (1,3,2)
Singles Competition
1. #69 Francisco Rocha (MTSU) def. Chase Ferguson (USF), 6-0, 6-2
2. #115 Stijn Slump (MTSU) def. Antonio Muniz-Hidalgo (USF), 6-4, 6-2
3. Ivan Yatsuk (USF) def. #101 Chris Edge (MTSU), 6-4, 6-2
4. Stepan Holis (MTSU) def. Sergio Gomez-Montesa (USF), 6-2, 4-6, 6-3
5. Alvin Tudorica (USF) def. Oskar Brostrom Poulsen (MTSU), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
6. Pavel Motl (MTSU) def. Bruno Oliveira (USF), 6-4, 6-7 (2-7), 6-3
Order of finish: (3,1,2,4,5,6)
Follow us
Follow Middle Tennessee men's tennis on social media - Facebook (BlueRaiderMensTennis), Twitter (MT_MensTennis) and Instagram (MT_MensTennis).
"The guys showed great fight again today. We did not play well at a number of spots and moments, but we battled and found a way to win," Head Coach Jimmy Borendame said. "I love this teams fight and won't go away attitude. We will work on things the next few days and prepare for a dangerous Tennessee Tech team and Bellarmine squad." Borendame said.
With the win, the Blue Raiders have now won 10 matches in a row dating back to Feb. 6. In that span, MT has defeated five ranked opponents, six power 5 opponents, and won the prestigious 74th Annual Blue Gray National Tennis Classic.
Middle Tennessee dropped the doubles point to USF to open the match; the Blue Raiders have now dropped the doubles point in their last two matches. Prior to the last two matches against Oklahoma State and USF, MT had won 16 of their previous 18 doubles points over opponents.
The Graduate Student duo of Chris Edge and Stepan Holis were the only Raiders who picked up a doubles win, defeating Alvin Tudorical and Sergio Gomez Montesa at 6-3 to move to 14-3 on the season as a pair.
In singles, the Bulls' rode their momentum from doubles and picked up a win over No. 101 Edge in two sets at 6-4, 6-2. He moves to 15-3 on the season and his loss was the second time he has fell in straight sets this year.
Middle Tennessee would rally on court Nos. 1 and 2 consisting of No. 69 Francisco Rocha and No. 115 Stijn Slump to equalize the match at two. Both Blue Raiders won in straight sets, Rocha dominated Chase Ferguson at 6-0, 6-2 on the top court and Slump triumphed over Muniz-Hidalgo at 6-4, 6-2.
Zasova, Czech Republic product Holis gave MT the 3-2 advantage with a three-set victory over Montesa.
USF would strike-back moments later, taking down Oskar Brostrom Poulsen on court No. 5 in three sets to tie the match yet again at three.
Pavel Motl clinched the match and sealed a victory for the Blue Raiders at 4-3 with two-straight aces over Bruno Oliveira. In finished matches, Motl has now won five-straight and has clinched the win for MT twice in that span.
Next Up
Middle Tennessee will return to Murfreesboro after a two-week hiatus away from home. The Blue Raiders will take on regional foe Tennessee Tech and Bellarmine on Sunday, March 13 at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. inside the Adams Tennis Complex. Admission is free inside the ATC for the duration of the season.
Doubles Competition
1. Rithvik Bollipalli/Bruno Oliveira (USF) def. #47 Oskar Brostrom Poulsen/Francisco Rocha (MTSU), 6-1
2. Chase Ferguson/Manuel Goncalves (USF) def. Stijn Slump/Pavel Motl (MTSU), 6-2
3. Chris Edge/Stepan Holis (MTSU) def. Alvin Tudorical/Serio Gomez Montesa (USF), 6-3
Order of finish: (1,3,2)
Singles Competition
1. #69 Francisco Rocha (MTSU) def. Chase Ferguson (USF), 6-0, 6-2
2. #115 Stijn Slump (MTSU) def. Antonio Muniz-Hidalgo (USF), 6-4, 6-2
3. Ivan Yatsuk (USF) def. #101 Chris Edge (MTSU), 6-4, 6-2
4. Stepan Holis (MTSU) def. Sergio Gomez-Montesa (USF), 6-2, 4-6, 6-3
5. Alvin Tudorica (USF) def. Oskar Brostrom Poulsen (MTSU), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
6. Pavel Motl (MTSU) def. Bruno Oliveira (USF), 6-4, 6-7 (2-7), 6-3
Order of finish: (3,1,2,4,5,6)
Follow us
Follow Middle Tennessee men's tennis on social media - Facebook (BlueRaiderMensTennis), Twitter (MT_MensTennis) and Instagram (MT_MensTennis).
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3,2
#1 Singles Match
12
66
Chase Ferguson / 0 [USF]
02
#2 Singles Match
12
66
Antonio Muniz / 0 [USF]
42
#3 Singles Match
12
42
Ivan Yatsuk / 0 [USF]
66
#4 Singles Match
123
646
Sergio Gomez Montesa / 0 [USF]
263
#5 Singles Match
123
644
Alvin Tudorica / 0 [USF]
366
#6 Singles Match
123
666
Bruno Oliveira / 0 [USF]
473
Order of Finish:
3,1,2,4,5,6
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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