ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – Throughout this season, the UCF men's tennis team have showed they have what it takes to hang with the nation's elite. Wednesday night at the USTA National Campus, the proved it once again.
The Knights (5-6, 0-0) were 4-2 winners over No. 30 Minnesota, snapping the Golden Gophers six-match winning streak.
"The guys competed better," said UCF director of tennis, John Roddick. "They were much more positive. The energy was good. It was very similar to some of the other matches we had, we were just able to get over the hump."
Doubles play has been a steady positive factor for the Black and Gold this year, and the trend continued against the Golden Gophers (8-4, 1-0).
Playing at No. 3, Gabriel DeCamps and Danny Kerznerman continue to mesh. The duo defeated Marino Alpeza and Eli Ogilvy, 6-2 in the opening match.
No. 11 nationally ranked doubles pair Korey Lovett and Eero Vasa showed why they are one of the country's elite tandems playing at No. 1. After being pushed to a tiebreaker against No. 66 Matic Spec and Felix Corwin, Lovett and Vasa were able to finish off their match with a 7-6 (7-4) win to earn the opening match point for UCF.
Having played multiple close matches in recent weeks, the Knights knew the fine line between victory and defeat and muscled their way into singles action.
Minnesota would take the first two singles matches to go up 2-1 overall. No 59 ranked singles player Stefan Milicevic evened the match at 1-1 at No. 3 with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Mikhail Sokolovskiy and Josip Krstanovic defeated Vasyl Kiselyov, 6-0, 6-4 to put the Gophers ahead.
That's when the Knights would flip the switch, taking three straight matches to seal the deal.
It started at No. 5, when Eero Vasa handled Jackson Allen in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4 to knot the match up at 2-2.
Next came the big Brazilian, Gabriel DeCamps, coming through at No. 2 with a 6-4, 6-3 win against the No. 105 ranked singles player in Spec.
The clincher came when No. 124 Alan Rubio was able to finish off Ogilvy, 7-5, 6-4 at No. 4.
UP NEXT
The Knights will face off against another BIG 10 opponent Friday, March 16, when they welcome Indiana to the USTA National Campus for a 6 p.m. match.
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UCF 4, #30 Minnesota 2
Singles Competition
1. Korey Lovett (UCF-M) vs. #88 Felix Corwin (MINN) unfinished
2. Gabriel DeCamps (UCF-M) def. #105 Matic Spec (MINN) 6-4, 6-3
3. #59 Stefan Milicevic (MINN) def. Mikhail Sokolovskiy (UCF-M) 6-4, 6-1
4. Alan Rubio (UCF-M) def. Eli Ogilvy (MINN) 7-5, 6-4
5. Eero Vasa (UCF-M) def. Jackson Allen (MINN) 6-4, 6-4
6. Josip Krstanovic (MINN) def. Vasyl Kiselyov (UCF-M) 6-0, 6-4
Doubles Competition
1. #11 Korey Lovett/Eero Vasa (UCF-M) def. #66 Matic Spec/Felix Corwin (MINN) 7-6 (7-4)
2. Mikhail Sokolovskiy/Alan Rubio (UCF-M) vs. Justyn Levin/Josip Krstanovic (MINN) unfinished
3. Gabriel DeCamps/Danny Kerznerman (UCF-M) def. Marino Alpeza/Eli Ogilvy (MINN) 6-2
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (3,6,5,2,4)
