Friday, January 25
Houston, Texas
3:00 PM
Rice University
5
vs
2
UTA
Photo by: Maria Lysaker - Rice Athletics
Owls Open Weekend on Winning Note
1/25/2019 6:56:00 PM | Men's Tennis
The Lead: Rice improved to 3-0 on the season by quickly quelling any fears their focus might have been equally on Sunday's match with UTRGV, who handed the Owls a defeat in the opener of the 2018 season. The Owls fought off a stern challenge by UT-Arlington in doubles then carried the momentum into singles to post a 5-2 win on Friday afternoon at the George R. Brown Tennis Center.
Doubles: Mohamed Abdel-Aziz and Daniel Warren held on to an early lead to finish first with a 6-4 win. UT Arlington answered back moments later with a win on two, sending the doubles decision to court one. Jacob Eskeland and Sumit Sarkar trailed 5-4 but rallied back to tie 5-5 and rallied again from a 0-30 deficit on Eskeland's serve in the 11th game to take a 6-5 lead. They took advantage of two service errors by the Mavs in the 12th game to close out their match and give the Owls a 1-0 lead.
Singles: Abdel-Aziz provided an early cushion with a quick win on court four and his Rice teammates also built upon the doubles momentum by taking four of six first sets in singles. Freshman Adam Oscislawski fought out of several jams in his second set to post the third point for the Owls and Sumit Sarkar provided the clincher with a straight set win over 2018 NCAA singles qualifier Guanarteme Nuez.
Head Coach Efe Ustundag: "As the week progressed, I really didn't feel that the UTRGV match was a part of the conversation for our guys. They were very focused on the guys they were getting ready to play today. A lot of the conversation this week was about the strategy for the players they would play today. I didn't think it was a match the guys would overlook because with all the attention now on the Universal Tennis Rating (UTR), they could see that their UTA rankings were right there with us. The guys were focused on a tough one today, and we got everything that we bargained for. I was pleased to see our third doubles team really jump on them and not give them any openings to come back. At one, we showed great fight to get back into it and take advantage of some opportunities at the end. UTA is a strong team and they play with a lot of energy and you can't really ever tell if they are down or up in a match, they always look and sound like they are winning. It was good for our guys to experience that. It was great to win four first sets in singles and when Jacob came through and won 7-5, that really felt like the straw that broke the camel's back. Mo got off to a great start and kept it up to get off the court, which was great. Adam's match wasn't the cleanest, but he stepped it up when he had to. Sumit played some high-level tennis against a quality opponent. It felt like he was always on offense and making good decisions. It was a good win and I can't wait to get back on the court tomorrow to work on some things and get ready for UTRGV."
Up Next: Rice will host UTRGV, which defeated the Owls 4-3 last year in Houston, at noon on Sunday as part of a combined dual with the Rice women's team. Fans in attendance will receive team posters for both teams and have an opportunity to have them autographed by the team members at the conclusion of the match.
Doubles: Mohamed Abdel-Aziz and Daniel Warren held on to an early lead to finish first with a 6-4 win. UT Arlington answered back moments later with a win on two, sending the doubles decision to court one. Jacob Eskeland and Sumit Sarkar trailed 5-4 but rallied back to tie 5-5 and rallied again from a 0-30 deficit on Eskeland's serve in the 11th game to take a 6-5 lead. They took advantage of two service errors by the Mavs in the 12th game to close out their match and give the Owls a 1-0 lead.
Singles: Abdel-Aziz provided an early cushion with a quick win on court four and his Rice teammates also built upon the doubles momentum by taking four of six first sets in singles. Freshman Adam Oscislawski fought out of several jams in his second set to post the third point for the Owls and Sumit Sarkar provided the clincher with a straight set win over 2018 NCAA singles qualifier Guanarteme Nuez.
Head Coach Efe Ustundag: "As the week progressed, I really didn't feel that the UTRGV match was a part of the conversation for our guys. They were very focused on the guys they were getting ready to play today. A lot of the conversation this week was about the strategy for the players they would play today. I didn't think it was a match the guys would overlook because with all the attention now on the Universal Tennis Rating (UTR), they could see that their UTA rankings were right there with us. The guys were focused on a tough one today, and we got everything that we bargained for. I was pleased to see our third doubles team really jump on them and not give them any openings to come back. At one, we showed great fight to get back into it and take advantage of some opportunities at the end. UTA is a strong team and they play with a lot of energy and you can't really ever tell if they are down or up in a match, they always look and sound like they are winning. It was good for our guys to experience that. It was great to win four first sets in singles and when Jacob came through and won 7-5, that really felt like the straw that broke the camel's back. Mo got off to a great start and kept it up to get off the court, which was great. Adam's match wasn't the cleanest, but he stepped it up when he had to. Sumit played some high-level tennis against a quality opponent. It felt like he was always on offense and making good decisions. It was a good win and I can't wait to get back on the court tomorrow to work on some things and get ready for UTRGV."
Up Next: Rice will host UTRGV, which defeated the Owls 4-3 last year in Houston, at noon on Sunday as part of a combined dual with the Rice women's team. Fans in attendance will receive team posters for both teams and have an opportunity to have them autographed by the team members at the conclusion of the match.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,2,1
#1 Singles Match
12
Guanarteme Nuez / 0 [UTA]
44
66
#2 Singles Match
12
Enrique Pardo / 0 [UTA]
67
36
#3 Singles Match
12
Mauricio Rio / 0 [UTA]
56
77
#4 Singles Match
12
Alejandro Hayen / 0 [UTA]
40
66
#5 Singles Match
12
Eduard Simo / 0 [UTA]
34
66
#6 Singles Match
123
Miguel Cabrera / 0 [UTA]
6212
2610
Order of Finish:
4,5,1,2,6,3
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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