Bulls Defeat Memphis, Advance to Sixth Straight Semifinals
ORLANDO, April 19, 2019 – The No. 3 seed USF Bulls will advance to their sixth straight conference semifinals after defeating sixth-seed Memphis today, 4-3. The four-time American Athletic Conference Champion Bulls will face Temple Saturday at noon.
The Bulls scored their first doubles point in three matches today, giving the team an early advantage. No. 87 tandem
Alberto Barroso-Campos (Montijo, Spain) and
Pierre Luquet (Draguignan, France) cleaned up court one, 6-4, and freshman pair
Chase Ferguson (Melbourne, Australia) and
Sergio Gomez Montesa (Valencia, Spain) finished 6-4 on court three.
USF (15-7) capitalized on their lead with timely wins by Ferguson on court two, 6-4, 6-2, and No. 18 Barroso-Campos on court one, 6-3, 6-4.
Memphis picked up momentum with a 6-2, 7-5, court-six finish against
Ivan Yatsuk (Minsk, Belarus) and by defeating
Jakub Wojcik (Delray Beach, Fla.) 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, on court four. The Tigers tied the quarterfinals match with a 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, victory against Gomez Montesa.
South Florida needed a win on court three to advance to the semifinals. Luquet continued action on the third court, coming back in his second set, 6-3, after losing the first. The junior clinched the match in a third-set triumph, swinging for an unanswered 6-0.
Quotable
Head coach, Ashley Fisher, on today's win…
"Really proud of the boys today. We made some great adjustments in the doubles which our guys executed perfectly. Singles was a battle but when things get tough down the stretch we have so much belief in ourselves. Great effort and results from our top guys getting off the court quickly and then Pierre coming through once again when we needed him. Our guys that lost competed incredibly well and we know they will take all the positives and improve tomorrow".
Match Results
Doubles
1. #87 A. Barroso-Campos/
Pierre Luquet (USF) def. #59 Oscar Cutting/David Stevenson (MEM) 6-4
2. Jan Pallares/Patrick Sydow (MEM) vs.
Jakub Wojcik/
Ivan Yatsuk (USF) no result
3.
Chase Ferguson/S. Gomez Montesa (USF) def. Matt Story/Marshall Sullivan (MEM) 6-4
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3)
Singles
1. #18 A. Barroso-Campos (USF) def. Chris Patzanovsky (MEM) 6-3, 6-4
2.
Chase Ferguson (USF) def. Jan Pallares (MEM) 6-4, 6-2
3.
Pierre Luquet (USF) def. Jeremy Taylor (MEM) 3-6, 6-3, 6-0
4. Matt Story (MEM) def.
Jakub Wojcik (USF) 3-6, 7-5, 6-2
5. Oscar Cutting (MEM) def. S. Gomez Montesa (USF) 6-4, 3-6, 7-5
6. Patrick Sydow (MEM) def.
Ivan Yatsuk (USF) 6-2, 7-5
Order of finish: Singles (1,2,6,4,5,3)
Up Next
USF will face Temple in the American Athletic Conference semifinals Saturday at noon.
Temple earned the No. 7 seed in the championship after a 14-6, 3-1 regular season consisting of conference wins against UConn, ECU, and Tulsa. The Owls defeated the reigning conference champion, Tulane, Friday morning, 4-3, after taking down UConn in the first round on Thursday, 4-0.
The Bulls previously faced Temple in the championship in the 2015 quarterfinals where USF left with the sweep, 4-0.
About Men's Tennis
Be sure to follow USF men's tennis on social media (Twitter / Facebook / Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information. Head coach Ashley Fisher will begin his third year at the helm of the program for the 2019 season after leading the Bulls to their fifth straight appearance in The American Championship.
– #GoBulls –
