Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Men’s Tennis Adds Matsuoka to 2022 Class
4/26/2022 11:09:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Joins Horak For Top Mid-Major Class in the Country
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee men's tennis head coach Jimmy Borendame announced the signing of Shu Matsuoka to a national letter of intent and the Blue Raiders' class of 2022 on Tuesday.
"Shu has a huge game. He is well-coached and is only scratching at his potential," said Coach Borendame. "He reminds me of former and current Middle Tennessee stars Miguel Negre Fernandez and Chris Edge. I am very excited to start working side by side with Shu."
Matsuoka, a 6-foot-1 standout from Tokyo, will be an impactful doubles and singles student-athlete for the Blue Raiders when he steps foot on campus. Shu joins the Middle Tennessee squad out of Wesley Chapel, Fla. and attended Saddlebrook Preparatory School playing for Alvaro Betancur.
In the 2021 school year, Matsuoka won the Inspiration Academy UTR Tournament Championship and was a finalist for the NGTA Open Men's Singles Tournament. He advanced to the quarterfinals of the J3 Cancun Cup and earned a career-high ITF rank of No. 940 on July 5 after going 5-3 in various competitions.
In the 2022 school year, Shu has competed in the M15 Sunrise and the M15 Cancun, where he advanced to the second round. Overall, Matsuoka has a 23-13 record against ITF ranked opponents.
Shu's father, Shuzo Matsuoka, is a former professional Japanese tennis star, both in his playing days and his post-playing days as a nationally recognized sports commentator in Japan. Shuzo reached a career-high ranking of No. 46 in the world, a former Wimbledon finalist in 1995, and won a singles title in Seoul in 1992.
Shu joins Ondrej Horak from the Czech Republic as the two future Blue Raiders in the 2022 class, which sits at No. 1 on the mid-major circuit and just outside the top-25 in the country.
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Follow Middle Tennessee men's tennis on social media - Facebook (BlueRaiderMensTennis), Twitter (MT_MensTennis) and Instagram (MT_MensTennis).
"Shu has a huge game. He is well-coached and is only scratching at his potential," said Coach Borendame. "He reminds me of former and current Middle Tennessee stars Miguel Negre Fernandez and Chris Edge. I am very excited to start working side by side with Shu."
Matsuoka, a 6-foot-1 standout from Tokyo, will be an impactful doubles and singles student-athlete for the Blue Raiders when he steps foot on campus. Shu joins the Middle Tennessee squad out of Wesley Chapel, Fla. and attended Saddlebrook Preparatory School playing for Alvaro Betancur.
In the 2021 school year, Matsuoka won the Inspiration Academy UTR Tournament Championship and was a finalist for the NGTA Open Men's Singles Tournament. He advanced to the quarterfinals of the J3 Cancun Cup and earned a career-high ITF rank of No. 940 on July 5 after going 5-3 in various competitions.
In the 2022 school year, Shu has competed in the M15 Sunrise and the M15 Cancun, where he advanced to the second round. Overall, Matsuoka has a 23-13 record against ITF ranked opponents.
Shu's father, Shuzo Matsuoka, is a former professional Japanese tennis star, both in his playing days and his post-playing days as a nationally recognized sports commentator in Japan. Shuzo reached a career-high ranking of No. 46 in the world, a former Wimbledon finalist in 1995, and won a singles title in Seoul in 1992.
Shu joins Ondrej Horak from the Czech Republic as the two future Blue Raiders in the 2022 class, which sits at No. 1 on the mid-major circuit and just outside the top-25 in the country.
Follow us
Follow Middle Tennessee men's tennis on social media - Facebook (BlueRaiderMensTennis), Twitter (MT_MensTennis) and Instagram (MT_MensTennis).
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