South Florida Men's Tennis delivered a strong performance on Saturday afternoon, defeating No. 37 Middle Tennessee, 5–2, at the USF Varsity Tennis Courts. The Bulls secured the doubles point and followed with four singles victories to earn the win over the nationally ranked Blue Raiders.
USF set the tone early in doubles play. Timeo Gaillard and Elijah Cham were the first pair off the courts, earning a convincing 6–2 win on court three. Shortly after, Toto Llanes and James Newton clinched the doubles point with a 6–2 victory on court two, giving the Bulls the early 1–0 advantage. The match played by Hugo Car and Ettore Danesi was left unfinished, with the Bulls in the drivers seat at 5–4.
Singles action began with a statement performance at the top of the lineup. Hugo Car delivered a big result on court one, defeating No. 80 in straight sets, 6–3, 6–4, to extend the Bulls' lead to 2–0.
Stepan Mruzek kept the momentum firmly on South Florida's side, delivering a composed 6–4, 6–3 victory on court three to push the Bulls out to a commanding 3–0 lead and put the home crowd firmly behind them.
Middle Tennessee answered on court two, where Elijah Cham battled through a tightly contested first set that came down to a tiebreak before falling 6–7, 3–6.
With the match tightening, Gughi Verdese stepped up in a big moment on court five. Verdese held steady through a physical contest, edging the opening set 7–5 before closing the door 6–4 to bring the clinch home for the Bulls.
The Blue Raiders stayed alive with a three-set win on court six after Toto Llanes fought through a back-and-forth battle, but South Florida quickly regained control on the remaining court moments later.
Agustin Cuellar clinched the match for South Florida on court four. After taking the opening set 6–2, Cuellar regrouped following a second-set loss and battled through a tight third-set tiebreak to secure a 6–2, 4–6, 7–6 win and cap the 5–2 victory for the Bulls.
As South Florida looks to capitalize on the momentum from their ranked win, their focus turns to another ranked opponent. The Bulls will take the court at 10am on Sunday, March 15 against the No. 70 Rice Owls.
About USF 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 is in his ninth year at the helm of the program for the 2025-26 season. Fischer has guided the Bulls to four NCAA Tournaments, including three trips to the second round. He was named the American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2017 & 2019 after leading USF to the conference title in each of those seasons.
– #Go Bulls –
