ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF men’s tennis team set a program record on Wednesday afternoon as five Knights appeared in the final ORACLE/ITA singles ranking of the fall. UCF posted the second most selections behind USC’s seven.
The Knights also boasted the most selections out of the American Athletic Conference, besting Tulane by one.
Gabriel DeCamps led the way for the Black and Gold at No. 31. The Brazilian international picked up a pair of singles titles to bookend the fall slate. DeCamps opened the year with the singles title at the 51st Annual Southern Intercollegiate Championships. He cruised through the field as the No. 8 seed on a perfect weekend. The sophomore then reached the quarterfinals of the Bedford Cup, before closing out the fall with the main singles flight title at the Longhorn Invitational. This fall, DeCamps posted an impressive 12-1 mark in singles action.
Juan Pablo Grassi Mazzuchi wasted little time making an impact for the Knights as the No. 57 ranked player. After a quick exit in the round of 32 at the Southern Intercollegiates, the freshman went on a roll, reaching the semifinals of the Bedford Cup, the quarterfinals of the ITA Southeast Regionals and the third-place match of the Longhorn Invitational. Grassi Mazzuchi ended his first fall at UCF with an 8-5 record.
Alan Rubio went 9-6 with one title during the fall to earn the No. 79 spot in the fall rankings. The Mexico international started things off with an appearance in the round of 16 at the Southern Intercollegiates. Following DeCamps lead, the sophomore made it two tournament wins for UCF in the opening two weeks of the fall, as he hoisted the Bedford Cup title in the main singles draw. Rubio also made it to the consolation quarterfinals of the ITA Regional.
Mikhail Sokolovskiy capped his fall at No. 88 in the rankings. The sophomore was almost a constant competitor late into the weekend. He reached the semifinals of the Southern Intercollegiates and the quarterfinals of the Bedford Cup. At the ITA Regional, the Russian international bounced back from an opening round defeat to win five straight matches and take home the consolation draw championship. Sokolovskiy was ready to add another title for UCF this fall at the Longhorn Invitational, but his final match was rained out. The sophomore capped his fall campaign with a 14-3 record.
Trey Hilderbrand rounded out the Knights’ presence in the last ranking of the fall, checking in at No. 107. In three tournaments for the Black and Gold, the Texas native was 7-4 and showed continuous improvement. After a round of 16 appearance in the Bedford Cup, Hilderbrand marked to the quarterfinals of the ITA Southeast Regional. The rookie nearly had his first tournament win as a Knight at the Longhorn Invitational, only for fellow Knight DeCamps to best him in the finals.
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