No. 29 Miami Faces UCF for College MatchDay
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Off the heels of a pair of ACC victories, the No. 29 University of Miami men’s tennis team returns to action Sunday when it travels to Lake Nona, Fla., to take on the UCF Knights at the USTA National Campus as part of the College MatchDay Series.
Action is set to get underway at 5 p.m., while admission to the event is free when acquiring tickets online HERE. The event will feature kid’s activities, including a free pre-match kids’ clinic, live music, specialty food and drinks, games, meet-and-greets with the teams and giveaways.
The USTA created College MatchDay in 2013 to showcase some of the best college tennis teams and campuses the sport has to offer. In 2017, with the opening of the USTA National Campus and its Collegiate Center, College MatchDay moved into a permanent home in Orlando.
The National Campus’ 1,200-seat collegiate stadium, the only off-campus stadium In America built specifically for college tennis, will host Sunday’s match set to be featured on national television, as the Tennis Channel partnered with the USTA will stream the event. Live Stats for the match can also be accessed HERE.
In a series that dates back to 1979, the Hurricanes boast a 15-3 all-time mark against the Knights. In last season’s tightly contested matchup, UCF edged Miami 4-3 on March 18, 2018 in Orlando. In the matchup, the Hurricanes collected the doubles point with sophomore Adria Soriano Barrera and Christian Langmo securing a win on court 1 and redshirt junior Dane Dunlap and sophomore Bojan Jankulovski winning on court 2. However, the Hurricanes came up short in a trio of third sets in singles action, as UCF secured the victory.
Miami (8-3, 2-0 ACC) enters the weekend holding its highest ranking in the Oracle/ITA national polls since May 30, 2011, rising six spots on Tuesday following a pair of conference victories over Georgia Tech (6-1) and Clemson (7-0). Individually, a pair of sophomores represent the Hurricanes in the ITA national singles rankings, as Soriano Barrera comes in at No. 24 and Jankulovski sits at No. 75.
Competing at No. 2 singles and No. 3 doubles in the pair of ACC victories, Francisco Bastias became just the second freshman in program history to garner ACC Player of the Week accolades following a perfect 4-0 week.
UCF (5-5) is riding a four-match winning streak into the contest, winning each of those matches 4-0 against Alabama-Birmingham, Samford and Bethune-Cookman twice. Gabriel Decamps leads the charge sitting at No. 22 in the national singles rankings, while Alan Rubio ranks No. 120.
Following the contest, the Hurricanes will return to the USTA National Campus and its Collegiate Center on Sunday, March 10 at 5 p.m. for neutral site contest against No. 21 Florida State.
To keep up with the University of Miami men’s tennis team on social media, follow @CanesMensTennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
