Alabama
Texas A&M
No. 22 Alabama Upsets No. 11 Texas A&M in Thrilling 4-3 Victory to Close the Regular Season
4/14/2024 6:51:00 PM | Men's Tennis
The Crimson Tide topped the Aggies for the first time in program history, helping secure the sixth seed in the SEC Tournament
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. –– The No. 22 Alabama men's tennis team (17-11, 6-6 SEC) defeated No. 11 Texas A&M (18-9, 7-5 SEC) in a thrilling 4-3 victory Sunday to close the regular season.
After the Aggies secured the doubles point, UA battled back-and-forth with Texas A&M in singles play. Matias Ponce De Leon evened the score at 1-1 with a win on court three, but Texas A&M found a victory on court four to take the lead again. Zach Foster tallied the Tide's second point with a win on court six, but once again the Aggies responded with a win, this time on court two. With just two matches remaining, Filip Planinsek found a come-from-behind upset victory over the 22nd-ranked singles player in the country, Raphael Perot, just seconds before Roan Jones won his second seven-point tiebreaker on court five to clinch the match.
From Head Coach George Husack
"We've had our opportunities this season and today was no different. Last year in College Station, we were on the losing end of a 4-3 match. Today, we had our chance to finish the regular season off the way we wanted it and the guys did it. The Aggies are always tough and are coached very well by Steve (Denton) and Kevin (O'Shea). Plenty of respect for them as coaches and they're both really good guys. I'm immensely proud of how our team responded after doubles and continued to push towards the finish line. They had their eyes on the prize and were relentless with their pursuit. Now off to Baton Rouge for the (Southeastern Conference) tournament. Keep moving the chains without excuses. That's all that matters."
From Filip Planinsek
"I'm extremely proud of this team, the work we put in every day. It was not easy to bounce back after the past two weeks on the road, but we showed how great we compete together, and we showed a lot of heart on the court. The feeling is just amazing and I'm looking forward to new challenges starting on Thursday in Baton Rouge."
From Roan Jones
"Really good effort from all the guys today. We had the belief that we could win and we turned up at home today. Roll Tide!"
Match Notes
- Texas A&M opened strong with back-to-back doubles wins on courts three and one, respectively
- Matias Ponce De Leon evened the score at 1-1 with a two-set, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Giulio Perego on court three
- The Aggies captured a win on court four, but Zach Foster battled through a first-set tiebreaker to take court six against Tiago Pires, 7-6(5), 6-1
- Texas A&M found a victory on court two to move the team to match point
- After suffering a loss off an opening set tiebreaker, 45th-ranked Filip Planinsek battled to upset No. 22 Raphael Perot with a 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3 decision and force the deciding point on court five
- Court five between Roan Jones and Luke Casper saw two tiebreakers that both fell to the Alabama sophomore
- Jones secured the first set off a 7-3 tiebreaker, before clinching the match with a 7-5 victory in the second tiebreaker less than minute after his teammate Planinsek secured the tying point on court one
- The win marked Alabama's first win in program history over the Aggies
- The Tide has now defeated four top-25 ranked teams this season, including No. 5 Southern California, No. 10 Kentucky and No. 25 Florida
Next
- Alabama will open competition at the SEC Championships in Baton Rouge, La., on Thursday, April 18
- The Tide will play as the sixth seed and will face 11th seeded South Carolina at 2 p.m. CT
Results
Doubles:
- #15 Giulio Perego/Togan Tokac (TAMU) def. #53 Filip Planinsek/Andrii Zimnokh (UA) 6-3
- #46 Zach Foster/Enzo Aguiard (UA) vs. Lathan Skrobareck/JC Roddick (TAMU) 4-4, unfinished
- Tiago Pires/Raphael Perot (TAMU) def. Matic Dimic/Roan Jones (UA) 6-3
Order of Finish (3,1)
Singles:
- #45 Filip Planinsek (UA) def. #22 Raphael Perot (TAMU) 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3
- #37 JC Roddick (TAMU) def. #117 Andrii Zimnokh (UA) 6-1, 2-6, 6-3
- Matias Ponce De Leon (UA) def. Giulio Perego (TAMU) 6-4, 6-2
- Togan Tokac (TAMU) def. #101 Enzo Aguiard (UA) 6-0, 7-5
- Roan Jones (UA) def. Luke Casper (TAMU) 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5)
- Zach Foster (UA) def. Tiago Pires (TAMU) 7-6 (5), 6-1
Order of Finish: (3,4,6,2,1,5)
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– UA –
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,1
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
3,4,6,2,1,5
Players Mentioned
