No. 23 Red Raiders Topple No. 17 Oklahoma, 4-3

Men’s tennis collects fifth ranked win of the year on Sunday

 

LUBBOCK, Texas – The No. 23 ranked Texas Tech men’s tennis team took down the No. 17 Oklahoma Sooners by a margin of 4-3 on Sunday afternoon at the McLeod Tennis Center.

Tech is now 14-10 on the year, including a 6-2 mark in Lubbock.

“Every win in the Big 12 is big,” head coach Brett Masi said. “We needed a win, and this is huge for us as we head to senior night on Friday. The guys rallied together after yesterday’s loss and came out and proved it today.”

The Red Raiders began their match by securing a pair of wins in doubles play to capture the initial match point, which has been a point of emphasis for Tech throughout the season. The No. 4 ranked tandem of Bjorn Thomson and Parker Wynn snagged a 6-2 win on court one and were quickly followed by a court three victory by Matheus Leite and Ilgiz Valiev.

With a 1-0 match advantage, Tech would increase their lead, thanks to a 6-2, 6-0 win by freshman Franco Ribero on court five. After surrendering a point on court one, Valiev would once again produce for the Red Raiders with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 victory over the No. 57 ranked singles player in the nation.

After dropping two more matches, Tech would look to Thomson to pull through on court four. With the match tied at 5-5 in the third set, Thomson took control and won the following two set points to clinch the match for the Red Raiders.

Sunday’s win is Tech’s first conference win of the season as they enter the final week of the regular season.

The Red Raiders will round out their regular season with a match against No. 7 Baylor at the McLeod Tennis Center in Lubbock on Saturday. First serve is set for 6 p.m. CT. Tech will then travel to Lawrence, Kansas to participate in the 2019 Big 12 Championships, beginning on Friday, April 19th.

–TECH–

Preston Jordan