Tampa, Fla., April 23, 2021 – The University of South Florida men's tennis team is heading to its seventh-straight American Athletic Conference final after defeating seventh-seeded SMU, 4-2, in the tournament semifinals on Friday. The Bulls advance after clinching four singles courts to move past the Mustangs.
 
The duo of Chase Ferguson (Melbourne, Australia) and Ivan Yatsuk (Minsk, Belarus) earned the only point in doubles for USF with their 6-3 win over Tomas Vaise and Caleb Chakravarthi. 
 
During singles play the Bulls rallied to win the four points to secure the victory. Yatsuk dominated Chakravarthi, 6-1, 6-1, to earn the first point for USF, and Manuel Goncalves (Porto, Portugal) returned to singles with a 7-6, 6-3 victory over Steinhausen. 
 
Ferguson, ranked No. 62, defeated Tomas Vaise, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, to put the Bulls within one point of the championship round. It was then up to Antonio Muniz-Hidalgo (Barcelona, Spain) whose final-set tiebreaker clinched the match against Liam Krall, 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (7-3), sending USF to the finals. 
 
Quotable
Head coach Ashley Fisher on today's win...
"I am always proud of our young men but never have I been prouder than today. To lose your number one player, and lose the doubles point, having six match points and then tough it out and take four singles is just a phenomenal effort. We showed so much heart, grit, and pride in representing our culture, each other, the University of South Florida, and the people of Tampa Bay. "Bullieve" because men's tennis does."
 
Up Next
USF is now set for a rematch against top-seeded and No. 11-ranked UCF on Saturday at 3 p.m.
 
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 –