NCAA Tournament Tuesdays: 2008 Men's Tennis

2008 Men’s Tennis
After recording a 17-8 regular season and earning a No. 19 ranking, it was no surprise that the 2008 Miami men’s tennis team was invited to the NCAA Tournament. Regular season victories against No. 13 Florida Gators and No. 28 Wake Forest helped earn the Hurricanes national recognition. In addition to their triumph in the regular season, the 2008 team made history by making it to the ACC Championship finals for the first time, gaining them a berth in to their third-straight NCAA Tournament.

In the NCAA Tournament, the No. 19 Canes were set to face the No. 42 USF Bulls in the first round of play. Senior Vivek Subramanian clinched the matchup in an intense three-set match with a 4-2 win for the Hurricanes. The Canes advanced to the second round of play, where they competed against No. 9 ranked Florida Gators. Unfortunately, the Hurricanes saw their great season come to an end in a 4-1 heartbreaker.

The 2008 men’s tennis team not only had a successful season as a whole, but amongst the individual players as well. Freshman Carl Sundberg, juniors David Rosenfeld and Daniel Vallverdu, and senior Vivek Subramanian all recorded 20-plus doubles wins. Additionally, Vallverdu had an astonishing 29 singles wins to contribute to Miami’s monumental success. At the close of the season, Vallverdu and Sundberg were recognized for their spectacular play and were rewarded with All- American honors.

During the 2008 season, head coach Mario Rincon coached the Canes to a 17-win season with a second round finish in the NCAA Tournament.

Rincon was a standout tennis player; he was recognized as an NCAA All- American in college, spent nine years on the ATP tour, as well as five years on the Japanese pro tour. Rincon took over the Miami men’s tennis program as head coach in 2004, leading the Hurricanes to four NCAA Tournament berths since then.