Men's Tennis Travels to Virginia Tech
February 23, 2013 | Men's Tennis
Feb. 23, 2013
LOUISVILLE, Ky., -- The University of Louisville men's tennis team will hit the road again this weekend as they travel to Blacksburg, Virginia to face the 49th ranked Virginia Tech Hokies at 1pm on Sunday.
"Virginia Tech is probably the truest rivalry we have," said U of L head coach Rex Ecarma. "We have played over year for about 17 years and so many of the matches were tied with one last match on. Some of the most memorable matches that I have coaches were against Virginia Tech. In 1999, Oliver Cantrell won the deciding match while dealing with severe muscle cramps for the last set and a half. In 2004, Octavian Nicodim saved 15 match points in the deciding match to win and last year Albert Wagner won the deciding match against a nationally ranked player 7-6 in the third set. I am excited about Sunday."
About Louisville
The Cardinals (7-6) enter Sunday's match ranked No. 38 in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) team rankings. Louisville is looking for a win after last Sunday's 4-0 loss at No. 51 Clemson.
Sophomore Sebastian Stiefelmeyer stands at No. 115 in the latest ITA singles rankings with a 15-11 record in singles. Sophomore Chris Simich carries a team-best 18-8 record in singles and is 7-4 in dual matches, playing mostly at No. 3. Albert Wagner and Alex Gornet come in at No. 31 in the doubles rankings with a 13-3 overall record, 6-2 mark in dual matches.
Cards Against the Opponent
Virginia Tech Hokies
Series Record: The Cards lead the series 9-8
Last Meeting: March 17, 2012 - Louisville scarcely defeated the Hokies 4-3 at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center.
Scouting the Hokies:
No. 49 Virginia Tech enters the match 6-2 after defeating No. 50 Michigan State, 5-2 on Sunday at home. The Hokies boast a No. 11 ranked freshmen duo with Amerigo Contini and Andreas Bjerrhus in the latest ITA doubles rankings. The two freshmen are also ranked in the most recent ITA singles rankings. Andreas Bjerrehus is ranked No. 44 and Amerigo Contini is tied for the 65th spot.
Up Next
The Cardinals continue match play on the road as they travel to Boston, Mass. to face No. 41 Harvard on March 3rd at 10am.
Players Mentioned
