@RazorbackMTEN Hosts No. 15 Florida On Friday
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas men’s tennis team (11-7, 1-3 SEC) will host No. 15 Florida (8-5, 3-2 SEC) at the George M. Billingsley Tennis Center at 2 p.m., CT on Friday.
Admission is free and open to the public. The match will take place at the George M. Billingsley Tennis Center, located at 1503 Nettleship Street, Fayetteville, AR 72701. Free pizza will be available to fans as supplies lasts.
LAST TIME OUT:
The Razorbacks were defeated by No. 13 Ole Miss, 4-1, at the Gillom Sports Center in Oxford, Mississippi on Thursday.
Ole Miss got momentum on its side early as Nik Scholtz and Zvonimir Babic beat Razorback pair of junior Santiago Munoz and freshman Branch Terrell 6-1 in the No. 1 spot. Arkansas rallied back as sophomore Johan den Toom and junior William Albanese won their third-straight, defeating Ricardo Jorge and Grey Hamilton 6-3. For the third match in a row, the doubles point came down to the No. 2 court. Arkansas senior Jovan Parlic and junior Giammarco Micolani battled with Gustav Hansson and Stefan Lindmark, but ultimately lost 6-4.
The doubles loss did not seem to shake the Razorbacks as they came back and won four-of-six first singles sets. However, Ole Miss answered these wins in stride and pushed the No. 1, 2 and 3 courts to third sets.
Arkansas’ biggest and only singles win of the day came from Micolani. The junior faced reigning SEC Player of the Year and No. 23 ITA-ranked Nik Scholtz. Micolani won the first set a commanding 6-2, but then lost in the second set by the same score. Forced into a third set, Micolani came away victorious as he beat Scholtz 6-3.
QUICK HITS:
– The Razorbacks look to collect their second SEC and first Top 25 win of the season.
– Playing primarily in the No. 6 spot, freshman David Herrerias has won eight consecutive singles matches. The Castro Urdiales, Spain native’s 6-2, 6-2 win over Alabama’s Sean Donohue proved key in the Razorbacks’ victory against the Crimson Tide on March 5 and his 9-2 dual record is the best on the team.
– After struggling in the beginning of dual play, junior Giammarco Micolani has won seven of his last eight matches in the No. 1 position. Most notably, Micolani defeated reigning SEC Player of the Year and No. 23 ITA-ranked Nik Scholtz (Ole Miss) on March 12.
– Leading the Razorbacks in dual doubles play is the duo of den Toom and Alabanese. Competing in the No. 3 spot, the pair holds a 7-1 record and has not faced defeat since Feb. 8.
A LOOK AT NO. 15 FLORIDA (8-5, 3-2 SEC):
Florida men’s tennis most recently defeated Alabama 4-2 in Gainesville, Florida on Sunday. The Gators took the doubles point, winning courts 1 and 3. Alabama was able to collect singles wins on courts two and six, but could not prevail as Florida claimed the three, four and five spots to win the match.
Two Florida players are currently ranked in the ITA singles top 125. Diego Hidalgo is No. 64, while Elliott Orkincame in at No. 99. In the doubles rankings, Hidalgo and Gordon Watson are No. 33.
Last season, the Razorbacks upset No. 15 Florida 4-3 in Fayetteville. The victory marked Arkansas’ first Top-15 win since defeating 11th-ranked Virginia in 2006.
LIVE STATS:
Follow Friday’s action HERE
For more information on Arkansas men’s tennis, follow @RazorbackMTEN on Twitter.
