Bulls Ready for Challenge to Begin 2021 Season
MATCHUP: South Florida at No. 9 Florida
WHEN: Sunday, Jan. 17 at 1 p.m.
LOCATION: Gainesville, Fla.
WATCH: https://bit.ly/39JShAd
STATS: https://bit.ly/3bMkCbv
TAMPA, Jan. 17, 2021 – University of South Florida men's tennis starts its 2021 season with a ranked matchup against the No. 9 Florida Gators. The match, scheduled for 1 p.m., will take place in Gainesville, Fla.
The Bulls enter the 2021 campaign with two of its doubles pairs ranked by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.
Jakub Wojcik (Delray Beach, Fla.) and
Rithvik Bollipalli (Hyderbad, India) combine for the No. 21 spot, while
Chase Ferguson (Melbourne, Australia) and
Pierre Luquet (Draguignan, France) pair together for No. 38 in the rankings.
USF looks to build off of last year's shortened season. Head coach
Ashley Fisher's squad finished with a 9-4 record including six sweeps. The team will look to avenge a 0-4 loss to UF at last season's ITA Kickoff Weekend.
Scouting Florida
The Gators are ranked the No. 9 team in the country by the ITA and return nine of its players from last season.
UF has five players ranked in the ITA singles top 125, with Sam Riffice (No. 8) and Duarte Vale (No. 12) both checking in in the top 25 overall. Riffice and Vale also combine to rank No. 45 in the doubles ranking.
Florida currently holds a 50-3 advantage in the all-time series versus the Bulls. Head coach Bryan Shelton enters his ninth season at the helm of the Gators' program, boasting a 145-63 record at the school.
Quotable
Head coach Ashley Fisher on opening the season at Florida...
"Today will be a great opportunity for our squad. We have prepared better than any team of which I've been part. Many of our players stayed in Tampa over Christmas and continued developing their games. We have a team that can on any given day can match up with the best programs in the country and today we will show that."
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 fifth year at the helm of the program for the 2021 season.
– #GoBulls –
