US Open National Playoff Underway, Sonia Hahn To UTRGV, More Schedules Released, PlaySight adding more schools

The US Open National Playoff got underway today in New Haven with three of the four men's seeds and two of the four women's seeds advancing to the quarterfinals. The men's third seed Eric Quigley (Kentucky '12) was knocked off by UCLA senior Gage Brymer in two tiebreak sets while both the second and fourth seeds, Evan King and Jose Statham, came back from a set down to win in three sets. The top seed Nick Meister (UCLA '12) won the most lopsided match of the day 6-1, 6-1 over Philip Major.

The women's top seed Ayaka Okuno, who spent a semester at Georgia in 2013, was knocked off in straight sets by Sophie Chang while the fourth seed Ashley Weinhold lost in three-sets to North Carolina freshman Sara Daavettila. There was a Universal Tennis Rating upset as Eva Raszkiewicz rolled over Fernanda Contreras 6-3, 6-1 - Raszkiewicz's UTR was 1.52 lower but that didn't seem to bother her at all. All the results are listed in the table down below (two tabs) along with the quarterfinal matchups.

Kelcy McKenna to Wisconsin, New Assistant at NCST, Jackson State Probation, Pro Circuit Update

Wisconsin Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez announced the hiring of Kelcy McKenna as the Badgers new women's coach. McKenna spent the previous four years at New Mexico with the first three as an assistant/associate before taking over as the head coach last season (went 15-7). McKenna replaces Tina Samara who resigned after three seasons to take the Pacific job.

Ohio State Outlasts Texas & Virginia Holds Off Oklahoma State

I think we now know that nothing is going to be easy for anyone in this year's NCAA Tournament as evidenced by yesterday's women's matches and today's first three men's matches.

Ohio State and Texas were supposed to start at 9 a.m. this morning but due to the wet courts outside they got put on hold and stayed on hold for a while. It seemed like the plan was to have them play indoors after the conclusion of the TCU/Cal match but the decision was made to move them outdoors so at 12:12 p.m. central time doubles finally begin under grey skies.

NCAA Round of 16 Previews - Virginia/Oklahoma State, Florida/SMU, Ohio State/Texas, TCU/Cal

[1] Virginia Cavaliers (26-4) vs. [16] Oklahoma State Cowboys (20-7) - 1pm ET - Virginia advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 4-0 win over Monmouth and a 4-1 win over Penn State while Oklahoma State beat Bryant and Arkansas 4-0. Oklahoma State will only be playing 75 miles from its Stillwater campus so it should have a good amount of fan support but it'll take a Herculean effort to get past Virginia. 

Doubles Records: Virginia 26-4, Oklahoma State 18-8

UTR Starting 6 Power Rating: Virginia 86, Oklahoma State 82

Chaotic Sunday - SMU, Texas, and Stanford Pull Off Upsets

What a crazy day it was on Sunday with not one, not two, but three regional hosts going down. The day started off in College Station with the resumption of Saturday's match between Texas A&M and Texas and it finished in Lubbock with SMU kicking the door down and stunning Texas Tech.

When the season started if you told me that Texas would be in Tulsa for the NCAA Round of 16 I would have told you to go see a doctor. Well Texas made a believer of me and many today after going into enemy territory and knocking off Texas A&M in a 4-3 thriller.

The match originally began on Saturday but after Texas A&M took the doubles point the match was stopped early in singles due to rain. Play resumed Sunday morning at 11am central and within a matter of minutes Texas had five first sets in the bag after Rodrigo Banzer, Adrian Ortiz, and George Goldhoff closed out sets on 4, 2, and 1.

NCAA First/Second Round Previews: Virginia & Oklahoma State Regionals

Virginia Regional
Snyder Tennis Center - Charlottesville, VA

[1] Virginia (24-4) vs. [49-64] Monmouth (11-9) - Saturday Noon ET - Virginia is the No. 1 overall seed though it got in as an at-large after losing to Wake Forest in the finals of the ACC Championship. Monmouth earned its first-ever NCAA Tournament berth after coming back from 3-0 down to beat Quinnipiac in the finals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). 

Doubles Records: Virginia 24-4, Monmouth 11-8

UTR Starting 6 Power Rating: Virginia 86, Monmouth 72

Friday Recap: Baylor Stuns Okie State, Oklahoma Hold Off Texas, Chalk at the B1G, San Diego/Pepperdine To Meet in WCC Finals, Farewell to UMBC & Hartford

Every year there are a handful of teams that play their way into the NCAA Tournament and after Baylor's performance today we can add another team to that list. Baylor came in to today's match against Oklahoma State firmly on the bubble and most likely needed a win to earn its spot in the NCAAs.

Due to the inclement weather the match was moved indoors and since there was a log-jam of matches to be played they played singles first. Oklahoma State won the regular season meeting less than two weeks ago in a match that was played indoors in Stillwater so you figured they had to feel pretty confident about their chances.

Virginia Wins Thriller Over UNC, Wake Holds Off VT, Georgia & Florida Advance at SEC, OU Wins Bedlam, Bruins Win Pac-12

Semifinal Saturday was good as expected in the ACC with an almost three rain delay adding to the suspense.  North Carolina was looking for its third of the season over No. 1 Virginia and for the better part of four plus hours it looked like they'd get it.

In the high-profile doubles matchup at No. 1 it was the ITA No. 3 team of Brett Clark and Robert Kelly rolling over the ITA No. 2 team of Ryan Shane and Luca Corinteli. Clark and Kelly broke UVA to start the match and then broke again to go up 5-2. Robert Kelly would serve it out to give UNC the 6-2.

Sunday Recap: UCLA Over USC, Texas Tech Takes Out OU, Columbia/George Washington/Jackson State NCAA Bound

Sunday was a tremendous day for college tennis with five matches broadcast on National TV. The day started off with Fox College Sports Pacific/Fox Sport Oklahoma showing the Oklahoma/Kansas women's match. Then you had Fox Sports 2 showing a doubleheader in Stillwater with the Oklahoma State women hosting TCU while the Oklahoma State men hosted Baylor. Lastly you had the Pac-12 Network showing a UCLA/USC doubleheader with the men playing first and then the women second.

Despite these matches being on television the stands were packed and the crowds were loud which made for a great environment for those of us that watched from home. I hope today was a glimpse into the future and not just a once a year thing. I'd love to be able to watch multiple matches every weekend and I want to applaud both Fox Sports, the Pac-12 Network, and ESPN for getting matches on its different platforms. The Tennis Channel broadcasted the finals of the Oracle/ITA Masters back in September but I don't believe they've had any college tennis on since so maybe that's something that will change in the future.

Friday Recap: UVA Too Strong For Wake, UGA Rolls Arky, UNC Holds Off GT

The two biggest matches of the day didn't end up being as close as I thought with both No. 1 Virginia and No. 6 Georgia rolling to victories over No. 7 Wake Forest and No. 12 Arkansas.

Virginia won its 13h straight regular season ACC Championship with a 5-2 win over Wake Forest in front of over 1100 fans. It looked like Wake Forest might take the early lead but Virginia was able to hang on in doubles. Wake's Romain Bogaerts and Dennis Uspensky won 6-2 at No. 3 but Virginia's Thai-Son Kwiatkowski and Mac Styslinger would break on the deciding point to go up 5-3 at No. 2. Kwiatkowski went up 40-0 on his 5-3 service but would double fault two times in a row to make it 40-30. Kwiatkowski would land a first set and then a Styslinger volley at the net would force a Wake error to clinch the 6-3 win.

Sunday: TCU and OU Win Big, South Florida Trumps Tulane, LSU KO's Kentucky, Lobos Tear-Up Tulsa, UMKC Wins 6 Hour Thriller

Sunday may not have been the most scintillating day of tennis, compared to say Friday, but there were still plenty of storylines to keep us all entertained.

Two of the top teams in the American Athletic Conference tangled on Sunday in New Orleans as No. 27 Tulane hosted No. 22 South Florida. South Florida picked up a 6-3 win at No. 1 doubles while Tulane won 6-3 at No. 2. South Florida served for the match at No. 3 doubles up 5-4 but Tulane's Alex and Ian Van Cott broke and then held for 6-5. South Florida's Robert Cid and Ignacio Gonzales-Muniz held for 6-6 and then the Bulls duo broke a 4-4 tie in the breaker by winning the final 3 points to take it 7-4.

What A Night - #55 Notre Dame Stuns #1 UNC, TCU & Kentucky Win 4-3 Thrillers, Georgia Rallies Past Florida, & More

Just when you think you've seen it all you get a day like today with one thrilling finish after another. Before I can even talk about all the 4-3 matches I got to give a shoutout to No. 55 Notre Dame who absolutely stunned top-ranked North Carolina in one of the biggest upsets, in terms of ranking, in college tennis history.

The Fighting Irish entered the night with a 12-12 record, and that was after beating Chicago State twice last Sunday, so most people probably figured at best they'd win a set or maybe a court but surely not the match. It was the final home match of the season for Notre Dame which meant it was the swan song for the five seniors on the roster. Four of the seniors (Monaghan, Lawson, Sabacinski, Montoya) would start and they would each play a role in the upset victory.

Who Let the Heels Out - UNC Takes Out UVA Again & UGA TKOs aTm

When North Carolina defeated Virginia to win the National Team Indoors back in February many thought that win wiped out all the streaks that Virginia had over North Carolina. It turns out there was another streak that was still intact going into today's match and that was the fact that Virginia had won the doubles point over North Carolina in 18 straight matches dating all the way back to April 3, 2004. Well that streak was broken today when North Carolina found a way to pull out the point in dramatic fashion.

Virginia's Collin Altamirano and JC Aragone didn't waste any time at No. 3 as they ran all over Ronnie Schneider and Andrew Gores 6-0.

North Carolina's No. 2 team of Brayden Schnur and Jack Murray took their first lead of the match when they broke to go up 4-3 and then Murray held for 5-3. Virginia's Mac Styslinger and Thai-Son Kwaitkowski would hold for 4-5, break Schnur for 5-5, and then hold for 6-5. Murray held to send it to a tiebreak and in the tiebreak the UNC pair jumped out to a 5-2* lead. UNC served up 6-4 but UVA got the mini-break back only to see UNC take the next point to win it 7-6(5).

Ride Sally Ride - Mustangs Run Over The Pokes, Boise State Comes Up Big Again, Texas Takes Out Tulsa

The hits keep on coming and on today's playlists we heard the 1966 classic Mustang Sally after No. 36 SMU ran all over No. 5 Oklahoma State 4-0.

SMU jumped out to the early 1-0 lead after taking the doubles point with wins at No. 1 and No. 3 and then the Mustangs claimed four opening sets in singles. SMU's Nate Lammons made it 2-0 with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Julian Cash at No. 1 and then Hunter Johnson put the Mustangs a point away from clinching with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Arjun Kadhe at No. 2. Redshirt junior Tony Russell would bring it home for SMU with a 7-6, 6-3 upset win over Lukas Finzelberg at No. 5.

Saturday Recap: Pac-12 Goes 2-0 In Indian Wells, Texas Tech Wins the HMVC, TCU Over Columbia, Utah State Makes History

It was a good day for the Pac-12 at the BNP Paribas Open Collegiate Tennis Challenge as both No. 14 Cal and No. 12 USC picked up wins over Big 12 opponents.

In the first match of the day it was the Battle of the Bears as Cal took on No. 21 Baylor. BU's Max Tchoutakian and Tommy Podvinski picked up a 6-2 win at No. 2 but Cal's Mads Engsted and J.T. Nishimura countered with a 6-3 win at No. 3. Cal's No. 1 team of Filip Bergevi and Florian Lakat served for the match up 5-3 but BU's Julian Lenz and Will Little broke and then Lenz held for 5-5. Cal held for 6-5 then Bergevi and Lakat broke the Little serve from 30-40 to win it 7-5.

Kentucky Holds Off Bama, FSU Slides Past Duke, Wisconsin Wins In Des Moines, Georgia Tech Tops NC State

Friday and Saturday brought us a ton of upsets but things leveled out on Sunday with most higher ranked teams holding court and getting the win.

Florida State capped off a nice weekend by defeating No. 66 Duke 5-2. The Seminoles claimed the doubles point by sweeping all three courts and then it took four opening sets in singles.

Friday night's hero, Marco Nunez, was first off the court with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Vincent Lin at No. 2 and his teammate Jose Gracia would put the Noles up 3-0 with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Ryan Dickerson at No. 5.

Cowboys Poke the Bears Plus Other Thursday Results

In an under the radar top 20 clash out in La Jolla it was #5 Oklahoma State edging #18 Cal 4-3. Oklahoma State took the doubles pint with 6-3 wins at #1 and #3 but Cal came back strong in singles and took four opening sets.

Oklahoma State only took two first sets in singles but both Julian Cash and Lukas Finzelberg managed to finish in straight sets. Cash upset the ITA #7 Andre Goransson 6-3, 6-2 at #1 while Finzelberg got the best of J.T. Nishimura 6-4, 6-3 at #6. Oklahoma State's lead was now 3-0 but it'd be a while before they could find its fourth point because Cal was in control on each of the remaining four courts.

Illinois Stuns #2 Virginia, Texas Shocks #5 Wake Forest, UCLA Holds Off Stanford, Okie State Drills USF

Man oh man what a day of tennis it was - we had some blowouts, some upsets, and some really big shockers. College tennis action was played outside in sunny skies, outside in windy conditions, and indoors in calm conditions. I'll start off with the match that I attended in Champaign-Urbana between #11 Illinois and #2 Virginia.

The temperature in C-U was in the mid-40s so there wasn't any doubt about whether the match would be played inside or outside. After having my complementary piece of pizza I walked into the Atkins Tennis Center and within the first 60 seconds I found out that Virginia would be playing without its #1 Ryan Shane. I talked with Ryan for a minute just before doubles and he said he's had a few things bothering him for a while and it was decided that it would be best to rest until he's back to 100%. He obviously wanted to be out there playing but at the same time he knew he needed to take care of his body so he could compete at the highest level in the later stages of the season. So Virginia had to retool two of its three doubles pairings and move everyone up a spot in the singles lineup.

Saturday Preview - Oklahoma St/South Florida, UCLA/Stanford, Virginia/Illinois

#9 Oklahoma State (10-1) vs. #14 South Florida (7-3) (Montgomery, AL) - 1:30pm est/12:30pm cst - Live Scoring - These teams were originally slotted in opposite ends of the draw at the Blue Gray but a last minute change was made and they'll end up facing each other in the semis. Oklahoma State is coming off a 4-0 win over Alabama in a match that could have finished 4-3 because the Tide led on each of the three remaining courts. South Florida was challenged by Boise State on Friday but still won it 4-0 and it probably would have finished 7-0 had it been played out.

South Florida loves playing outdoors while Oklahoma State is probably a little better indoors so I think that may help determine the outcome. Both teams have played great doubles this season so that should be a tightly contested point.

Friday Recap: Ohio St Hammers A&M, Nwestern Overwhelms NCST, OKST survies GAST

Sometimes rematches result in different outcomes and sometimes they don't - tonight's Ohio State/Texas A&M match in Columbus turned out to be the latter. These teams met just five days ago in the National Indoors consolation rounds with Ohio State pulling out a 4-3 squeaker but this evening it was all Buckeyes.

Last week Texas A&M won the doubles point, though Herkko Pollanen didn't play, but tonight with Pollanen playing at #1 with Mikael Torpegaard they and the team cruised past A&M.

Ohio State swapped Martin Joyce and Ralf Steinbach at #5 and #6 and Hugo Di Feo and Chris Diaz at #2 and #3. Texas A&M swapped Jordi Arconada and Shane Vinsant at #2 and #3 which meant both of those matchups stayed the same from the previous meeting. Harrison Adams also returned to the lineup tonight after sitting out on Sunday. (box score from last week is below tonight's box score)