Monday, April 18
Tulsa, OK
5:00 p.m
SMU
at
No. 49 Tulsa
Photo by: George Walker/DFWsportsonline
No. 27 Mustangs Face Ranked Road Battle In Season Finale At No. 49 Tulsa
Apr 17 | Men's Tennis
No. 27 SMU (18-6) vs No. 49 Tulsa (13-9)
Tulsa, Oklahoma
April 18, 2022
SMU Season Stats
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TULSA, Okla. (SMU) – No. 27 SMU enters its season finale at No. 49 Tulsa with an unbeaten conference and road record, each at 6-0. The match will be played at 5:00 p.m. CT on Monday, April 18th. The Mustangs are 18-6 overall and have won their last seven matches. Tulsa will be a tough matchup, having just knocked off Wichita State 4-0 and No. 17 Middle Tennessee 4-2.
SMU played its final home matches of the season on Saturday. They defeated Rice 4-1 in the Turpin Cup and UT Dallas 5-2 in their Senior Day matchup. Julian Steinhausen shined for the Mustangs, picking up yet another doubles win with partner Huntley Allen, and a straight set singles victory.
Scouting Tulsa
The 49th ranked Hurricane have climbed as high as No. 28 in the ITA National Rankings this season. They stand at 13-9 overall and 1-3 in conference play. Tulsa's notable wins include No. 17 Middle Tennessee (4-2), No. 18 Pepperdine (4-3), and No. 35 Oklahoma (6-1). They lost to current No. 1 TCU 0-4 and No. 3 Baylor 1-4. In conference play, the Hurricane have beaten Wichita State twice, but lost to current No. 40 USF, current No. 46 UCF, and No. 64 Tulane.
Their lineup is led by 87th ranked singles player, Kody Pearson. He is on a three-match winning streak and holds a 12-4 dual record with all of his matches being played at the top line. He is 5-3 against ranked opponents. Tulsa's lineup is also very strong on lines four through six. Their records across these lines are 12-5, 15-6, and 10-6, respectively. Connor Di Marco, playing lines four and five, is 13-4 this season. Pearson and Di Marco are ranked No. 73 in the nation in doubles with an 8-3 record and a current five-match winning streak. They have played all of their matches on line one and are 3-3 versus ranked opponents. Five different doubles teams have combined for an overall 15-7 record on line three for the Hurricane.
In their most recent meeting last April, SMU defeated Tulsa 4-3. The all-time series is deadlocked at 13 apiece. The Mustangs hold a slight 6-4 edge when playing at Tulsa.
Hot Mustangs
Huntley Allen and Julian Steinhausen have won five in a row and 10 out of their last 11 doubles matches. They are 11-2 in dual play this season.
Steinhausen has won his last five singles matches, the last four being in straight sets.
Pranav Kumar is unbeaten in his last four matches, and has won six of his last seven. He has been a force all season long on the fourth line, currently holding a record of 8-2 at the position.
Liam Krall has won three straight singles matches and five of his last six. The sophomore also split sets in an unfinished match with No. 18 ranked singles player Luc Fomba of current No. 1 TCU on March 21st.
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Sweep 'Stangs
SMU has swept eight opponents so far this season. No. 37 Memphis, No. 60 UTSA, and Temple are on the list.
Making National Noise
The Mustangs pulled off a dramatic 4-3 road win over No. 18 Texas A&M on February 27th. This was SMU's highest ranked win since defeating No. 8 Texas Tech in the second round of the 2016 NCAA tournament and third top 20 win since head coach Grant Chen took over the program in 2018. Former Aggie, Pranav Kumar clinched the win for SMU.
The Mustangs also defeated No. 35 San Diego 4-3 on the road on March 5th. San Diego native Ivan Thamma, a graduate transfer from UC Davis, clinched the match for SMU. He erased a 6-7, 1-4 deficit, winning the final two sets 6-4, 6-4. Thamma and doubles partner Adam Neff also knocked off San Diego's No. 43 ranked doubles team of Holmgren and Osorio 6-3, handing them their first loss of the year.
In a close 4-3 loss to No. 19 Middle Tennessee on March 3rd, Thamma and Neff defeated the No. 47 ranked doubles team of Francisco Rocha and Oskar Poulsen 6-3. Caleb Chakravarthi also beat No. 101 ranked singles player Chris Edge in straight sets 7-6, 6-1.
On March 25th the Mustangs knocked off No. 57 UCF 4-3 in Orlando, handing them their first AAC loss since April 2019. For the second time this season, Thamma clinched the match. The grad-senior completed the comeback after being down a set and fighting off two match points in the second.
SMU notched its sixth ranked win of the season, defeating No. 37 Memphis 4-0 on April 4th. It was the Mustangs first win over the Tigers since 2011 and second ever sweep.
Ranking the 'Stangs
Since February 23rd, the Mustangs have jumped 31 spots in the ITA national rankings. They currently stand at No. 27. The highest SMU climbed last year was No. 44.
Adam Neff and Ivan Thamma came in at No. 59 in the latest ITA national doubles rankings. Neff and Pranav Kumar cracked the rankings for the first time at No. 82. They picked up a signature win over Memphis' No. 18 ranked duo on April 4th.
Mustangs On Tour
Four SMU men's tennis players debuted on the ATP Tour at the Dallas Open in February. Caleb Chakravarthi, Liam Krall, and Adam Neff were all awarded matches in singles, while Adam Neff and Ivan Thamma were given a spot in doubles. The field included three top-30 ranked players in the world including John Isner, Taylor Fritz, and Reilly Opelka. Neff and Thamma came closest to winning their match, as they split sets with Sam Querrey and Jackson Withrow before losing 10-5 on a tiebreak.
Chen Hits Milestone Wins Mark
The Mustangs defeated UTSA 4-0 on March 13th, marking Head Coach Grant Chen's 50th career win. He previously spent six years at UCLA as Assistant Coach/Associate Head Coach before coming to SMU in 2018.
AAC Honors
Graduate senior Pranav Kumar was named AAC Men's Tennis player of the week on March 1st, after clinching the Mustangs' 4-3 win over his former team, the No. 18 ranked Texas A&M Aggies. This was Kumar's second consecutive match clinching win, having lifted SMU to victory over Nebraska 4-3 on February 20th.
Sophomore Adam Neff also received player of the week honors on April 5th. Neff played at the number one line in all six of his matches that week, going 2-1 in singles and 3-0 in doubles. Neff and Pranav Kumar clinched the doubles point against No. 37 Memphis, battling back from down 2-5 to beat the Tigers' No. 18 ranked pairing 7-5. SMU went 3-0 in the matches, defeating Temple 4-0, Wichita State 4-2, and No. 37 Memphis 4-0.
Fall Titles
SMU won a number of tournaments this fall. Former AAC Freshman of the Year Liam Krall took the singles title at the Lakes Collegiate Invitational. Senior captain Caleb Chakravarthi won the singles title, as well as the doubles title with Julian Steinhausen at the Islander Invite. Jordi Redelijk won the singles title at the Ralston/Neufeld Coaches Challenge, while Kyle Sillman and John Zisette took the doubles trophy.
Tulsa, Oklahoma
April 18, 2022
SMU Season Stats
American | Live Stream & Stats
Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
TULSA, Okla. (SMU) – No. 27 SMU enters its season finale at No. 49 Tulsa with an unbeaten conference and road record, each at 6-0. The match will be played at 5:00 p.m. CT on Monday, April 18th. The Mustangs are 18-6 overall and have won their last seven matches. Tulsa will be a tough matchup, having just knocked off Wichita State 4-0 and No. 17 Middle Tennessee 4-2.
SMU played its final home matches of the season on Saturday. They defeated Rice 4-1 in the Turpin Cup and UT Dallas 5-2 in their Senior Day matchup. Julian Steinhausen shined for the Mustangs, picking up yet another doubles win with partner Huntley Allen, and a straight set singles victory.
Scouting Tulsa
The 49th ranked Hurricane have climbed as high as No. 28 in the ITA National Rankings this season. They stand at 13-9 overall and 1-3 in conference play. Tulsa's notable wins include No. 17 Middle Tennessee (4-2), No. 18 Pepperdine (4-3), and No. 35 Oklahoma (6-1). They lost to current No. 1 TCU 0-4 and No. 3 Baylor 1-4. In conference play, the Hurricane have beaten Wichita State twice, but lost to current No. 40 USF, current No. 46 UCF, and No. 64 Tulane.
Their lineup is led by 87th ranked singles player, Kody Pearson. He is on a three-match winning streak and holds a 12-4 dual record with all of his matches being played at the top line. He is 5-3 against ranked opponents. Tulsa's lineup is also very strong on lines four through six. Their records across these lines are 12-5, 15-6, and 10-6, respectively. Connor Di Marco, playing lines four and five, is 13-4 this season. Pearson and Di Marco are ranked No. 73 in the nation in doubles with an 8-3 record and a current five-match winning streak. They have played all of their matches on line one and are 3-3 versus ranked opponents. Five different doubles teams have combined for an overall 15-7 record on line three for the Hurricane.
In their most recent meeting last April, SMU defeated Tulsa 4-3. The all-time series is deadlocked at 13 apiece. The Mustangs hold a slight 6-4 edge when playing at Tulsa.
Hot Mustangs
Huntley Allen and Julian Steinhausen have won five in a row and 10 out of their last 11 doubles matches. They are 11-2 in dual play this season.
Steinhausen has won his last five singles matches, the last four being in straight sets.
Pranav Kumar is unbeaten in his last four matches, and has won six of his last seven. He has been a force all season long on the fourth line, currently holding a record of 8-2 at the position.
Liam Krall has won three straight singles matches and five of his last six. The sophomore also split sets in an unfinished match with No. 18 ranked singles player Luc Fomba of current No. 1 TCU on March 21st.
__________________________________________________________________
Sweep 'Stangs
SMU has swept eight opponents so far this season. No. 37 Memphis, No. 60 UTSA, and Temple are on the list.
Making National Noise
The Mustangs pulled off a dramatic 4-3 road win over No. 18 Texas A&M on February 27th. This was SMU's highest ranked win since defeating No. 8 Texas Tech in the second round of the 2016 NCAA tournament and third top 20 win since head coach Grant Chen took over the program in 2018. Former Aggie, Pranav Kumar clinched the win for SMU.
The Mustangs also defeated No. 35 San Diego 4-3 on the road on March 5th. San Diego native Ivan Thamma, a graduate transfer from UC Davis, clinched the match for SMU. He erased a 6-7, 1-4 deficit, winning the final two sets 6-4, 6-4. Thamma and doubles partner Adam Neff also knocked off San Diego's No. 43 ranked doubles team of Holmgren and Osorio 6-3, handing them their first loss of the year.
In a close 4-3 loss to No. 19 Middle Tennessee on March 3rd, Thamma and Neff defeated the No. 47 ranked doubles team of Francisco Rocha and Oskar Poulsen 6-3. Caleb Chakravarthi also beat No. 101 ranked singles player Chris Edge in straight sets 7-6, 6-1.
On March 25th the Mustangs knocked off No. 57 UCF 4-3 in Orlando, handing them their first AAC loss since April 2019. For the second time this season, Thamma clinched the match. The grad-senior completed the comeback after being down a set and fighting off two match points in the second.
SMU notched its sixth ranked win of the season, defeating No. 37 Memphis 4-0 on April 4th. It was the Mustangs first win over the Tigers since 2011 and second ever sweep.
Ranking the 'Stangs
Since February 23rd, the Mustangs have jumped 31 spots in the ITA national rankings. They currently stand at No. 27. The highest SMU climbed last year was No. 44.
Adam Neff and Ivan Thamma came in at No. 59 in the latest ITA national doubles rankings. Neff and Pranav Kumar cracked the rankings for the first time at No. 82. They picked up a signature win over Memphis' No. 18 ranked duo on April 4th.
Mustangs On Tour
Four SMU men's tennis players debuted on the ATP Tour at the Dallas Open in February. Caleb Chakravarthi, Liam Krall, and Adam Neff were all awarded matches in singles, while Adam Neff and Ivan Thamma were given a spot in doubles. The field included three top-30 ranked players in the world including John Isner, Taylor Fritz, and Reilly Opelka. Neff and Thamma came closest to winning their match, as they split sets with Sam Querrey and Jackson Withrow before losing 10-5 on a tiebreak.
Chen Hits Milestone Wins Mark
The Mustangs defeated UTSA 4-0 on March 13th, marking Head Coach Grant Chen's 50th career win. He previously spent six years at UCLA as Assistant Coach/Associate Head Coach before coming to SMU in 2018.
AAC Honors
Graduate senior Pranav Kumar was named AAC Men's Tennis player of the week on March 1st, after clinching the Mustangs' 4-3 win over his former team, the No. 18 ranked Texas A&M Aggies. This was Kumar's second consecutive match clinching win, having lifted SMU to victory over Nebraska 4-3 on February 20th.
Sophomore Adam Neff also received player of the week honors on April 5th. Neff played at the number one line in all six of his matches that week, going 2-1 in singles and 3-0 in doubles. Neff and Pranav Kumar clinched the doubles point against No. 37 Memphis, battling back from down 2-5 to beat the Tigers' No. 18 ranked pairing 7-5. SMU went 3-0 in the matches, defeating Temple 4-0, Wichita State 4-2, and No. 37 Memphis 4-0.
Fall Titles
SMU won a number of tournaments this fall. Former AAC Freshman of the Year Liam Krall took the singles title at the Lakes Collegiate Invitational. Senior captain Caleb Chakravarthi won the singles title, as well as the doubles title with Julian Steinhausen at the Islander Invite. Jordi Redelijk won the singles title at the Ralston/Neufeld Coaches Challenge, while Kyle Sillman and John Zisette took the doubles trophy.
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