Men's Tennis Makes Statement at OU
NORMAN, Okla. — With a shining opportunity to make a statement against a top opponent, the Arkansas men’s tennis team came through with a 5-2 victory at No. 10 Oklahoma on Sunday afternoon. Mike Redlicki and Giammarco Micolani each picked up a win in singles play, as well as a win together at No. 1 doubles.
The No. 49 pair of Micolani and Redlicki defeated the Sooners’ No. 35 duo of Alex Ghilea and Andrew Harris by a score of 6-3 at the top doubles spot. Coupled with a 6-4 victory by Santiago Munoz and Johan den Toom at No. 3 doubles, the Razorbacks picked up the opening point to take an early 1-0 lead.
With the win, Arkansas won its seventh-straight match, improving to 10-2 on the season. Meanwhile, the No. 10 Sooners fell to 6-4.
“This is a great win for us; the team competed really hard,” head coach Andy Jackson said. “Mike, Giammarco and others were really clutch today.
“Now we play Kentucky on Friday and our challenge is to prepare to face another top team, because we know how good and how ready they’ll be. We’re excited to continue our season and start SEC competition.”
NOTABLES
• Redlicki’s singles win came over No. 63 Axel Alvarez Llamas in straight sets. It was his third-consecutive win and his second victory over a ranked opponent this season (No. 31 Hunter Johnson of SMU).
• Micolani got back on track after three consecutive singles losses. He defeated No. 119 Florin Bragusi in straight sets to improve to 1-3 this season against ranked opponents.
• Adam Sanjurjo defeated Maxime Mora 6-0, 6-4 at No. 4 singles to give Arkansas a 2-0 lead. He won his fifth-consecutive singles match, including his fourth consecutive in straight sets, and improved to a team-best 7-1 on the season.
• Jose Salazar, who transferred from Oklahoma last year, clinched the fifth and final point for the Razorbacks at No. 2 singles. He defeated Spencer Papa in the only three-set match of the afternoon.
• This season, Arkansas boasts a 44-19 (.698) record in singles play. Redlicki has a 6-1 record at No. 1, while Salazar is an undefeated 4-0 at No. 2.
• The Razorbacks boast a 19-6 (.760) overall doubles record this year. The Micolani/Redlicki duo is 5-2 at the No. 1 position, while the team of Munoz/den Toom is 5-1 at No. 3.
UP NEXT
Arkansas now moves on to SEC play with two conference road matches next weekend. First, the Razorbacks play No. 18 Kentucky in Lexington on Friday, March 4, then Tennessee in Knoxville on Sunday, March 6.
TODAY’S RESULTS
DOUBLES
1. #49 Giammarco Micolani/Mike Redlicki (AR) def. #35 Alex Ghilea/Andrew Harris (OU) 6-3
2. Axel Alvarez Llamas/Spencer Papa (OU) vs. Jose Salazar/Adam Sanjurjo (AR) 5-4, unfinished
3. Santiago Munoz/Johan den Toom (AR) def. Andre Biro/Austin Siegel (OU) 6-4
SINGLES
1. #82 Mike Redlicki (AR) def. #63 Axel Alvarez Llamas (OU) 6-4, 7-6 (0)
2. Jose Salazar (AR) def. Spencer Papa (OU) 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-3
3. #100 Alex Ghilea (OU) def. Santiago Munoz (AR) 6-2, 6-2
4. Giammarco Micolani (AR) def. #119 Florin Bragusi (OU) 6-3, 7-5
5. Adam Sanjurjo (AR) def. Maxime Mora (OU) 6-0, 6-4
6. Andre Biro (OU) def. William Albanese (AR) 6-3, 6-4
ORDER OF FINISH
Doubles (1,3); Singles (5,3,6,1,4,2)
