No. 55 MTen Closes Schedule with Senior Day

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The No. 55 University of Miami men’s tennis team concluded its 2013 regular season with inspired play.  The Hurricanes competed hard in all facets of the match today, but dropped a tough 6-1 final to top-ranked Virginia. Today’s match also served as senior day, as Miami’s lone senior player Victor Mauz was honored.

“Our guys did not back down from Virginia, a team that is ranked number one in the country,” head coach Mario Rincon said. “Our guys put up a great fight.  I am very proud of our effort today.”

“I thought we had a couple opportunities to win more matches and more sets,” Rincon explained.  “We played the number one and number two singles players in the country toe to toe today and Diego and Gabriel played at a really high level. It is rewarding for us coaches to see that they have grown and that their games have improved. I think we were a couple points from making this match really close.” 

“Virginia is an amazing team,” Rincon said.  “They are extremely talented in every position, in singles and doubles and that is the reason why they are number one in the country and the front runners to win the national title.”

The Hurricanes (13-12, 2-8 ACC) fought hard on all three doubles courts but were unable to pull out a victory.  Virginia, who has three nationally ranked doubles teams, grabbed its first win on court two, as the 75th-ranked tandem of Justin Shane and Julen Uriguen downed Miami’s William Albanese and Jack Murphy, 8-2.  The Cavaliers clinched the doubles point after the top-ranked duo of Jarmere Jenkins and Mac Styslinger grabbed an 8-4 win over Gabriel Flores and Diego Soto.

Court three doubles were played out after the point was clinched. Mauz and Wilfredo Gonzalez posed a stiff challenge to the Cavaliers’ 20th-ranked duo of Alex Domijan and Harrison Richmond, but came up short in a close 8-6 final.

Singles competition featured a pair of three set matches, as the Hurricanes continued their inspired play.

Virginia, however, claimed the first singles match of the day after No. 76 Harrison Richmond defeated Murphy, 6-3, 6-2, giving the Cavaliers a 2-0 advantage. 

Diego Soto, playing at No. 1 singles, competed hard against 2nd-ranked Domijan but lost in a close first set tie breaker, before dropping the second set, 6-1, putting the visitors within one point of clinching the match.

William Albanese battled hard at the fourth singles slot, but No. 23 Mac Styslinger proved too strong in a 6-3, 7-5 final, sealing the victory for the Cavaliers.

Arguably, the most competitive match of the afternoon happened on court two, as Gabriel Flores faced off against the nation’s top-ranked player in Jarmere Jenkins. The two exchanged leads in the early going but Jenkins grabbed a couple service breaks down the stretch and slipped by Flores, 7-6, 7-5.

Wilfredo Gonzalez has displayed dominance at home all season and today was no different.  The Guatemala City, Guatemala native put Miami on the board after winning a tough three setter at No. 3 singles.  After splitting the first two sets, Gonzalez shut the door on No. 58 Ryan Shane in the third set, winning 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.

Gonzalez has lead the Hurricanes in singles wins all season, posting a 16-8 overall record, including an impressive 12-1 mark at home.

“Wilfredo loves playing here in Miami,” Rincon said.  “He enjoys the conditions and the speed of the court. He plays his best tennis here at home and today he beat a great player in Ryan Shane.”

Coach Rincon was pleased to see Gonzalez display some of the things they have been working on in practice during the match.

“Today he did some things differently on the court,” Rincon said.  “He saw today that he had to implement those small changes during matches and they worked out for him. I believe it will make him a better player.”

Mauz, playing in his final home match, closed his senior campaign with solid play at No. 5 singles.  After dropping the first set, 6-3, Mauz battled back from a tough 3-0 deficit in the second frame to claim the set, 7-6, pushing the match to a third set.  In the deciding frame, Mauz fought hard but Virginia’s Julen Uriguen grabbed a 6-1 win to claim the match.

“Victor played a really good match today,” Rincon said.  “He played really good in doubles and was able to carry over that momentum into singles. He had an overall great day.”

“We are going to miss Victor very much.  He is a great friend of all of our guys and he is fun to coach and he is just an awesome kid to have on the team.  I am happy that he was able to compete at a really high level today.”

Mauz ended a successful collegiate career today.  In his short stint at Miami, the Suresnes, France native racked up 21 singles wins including a 6-7, 7-5, 6-4 victory over Florida Atlantic’s Will Neuner to advance to the semifinals of the Florida Gulf Coast Invitational.

The 6-2 right-hander has also found success off the court.  As a finance major, Mauz maintained a 4.0 GPA and has tabbed an array of academic honors, including the Provost’s honor roll, the Dean’s list, the President’s honor roll and the Athletic Director’s honor roll.

Miami will next travel to Cary, N.C., on Thursday, April 25 for the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference tennis tournament.  Miami’s opponent has not been determined.

For more information on the University of Miami men’s tennis team, log on to HurricaneSports.com. To follow the UM men’s tennis team socially, visit Twitter.com/CanesMensTennis and facebook.com/MiamiHurricanesMensennis

Singles Competition

1. #2 Alex Domijan (UVA) def. Diego Soto (MIA) 7-6, 6-1

2. #1 Jarmere Jenkins (UVA) def. Gabriel Flores (MIA) 7-5, 7-6

3. Wilfredo Gonzalez (MIA) def. #58 Ryan Shane (UVA) 6-4, 4-6, 6-4

4. #23 Mac Styslinger (UVA) def. William Albanese (MIA) 6-3, 7-5

5. Julen Uriguen (UVA) def. Victor Mauz (MIA) 6-3, 6-7, 6-1

6. #76 Harrison richmond (UVA) def. Jack Muprhy (MIA) 6-3, 6-2

Doubles Competition

1. #1 Jarmere Jenkins/Mac Styslinger (UVA) def. Diego Soto/Gabriel Flores (MIA) 8-4

2. #75 Justin Shane/Julen Uriguen (UVA) def. William Albanese/Jack Murphy (MIA) 8-2

3. #20 Alex Domijan/Harrison Richmond (UVA) def. Wilfredo Gonzalez/Victor Mauz (MIA) 8-6