Friday, May 5
Fort Worth, TX
2:00 P.M.
SMU
vs
Texas A&M
Photo by: George Walker/DFWsportsonline
SMU Men’s Tennis Set To Begin NCAA Tournament With First Round Matchup Against Texas A&M
May 4 | Men's Tennis
No. 46 SMU (18-13) vs No. 18 Texas A&M (18-11)
Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center – Fort Worth, Texas 2 p.m. | Friday, May 5
Tickets
Season Stats Live Stats | Live Stream
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FORT WORTH, Texas (SMU)- The No. 46 SMU men's tennis will begin their 2023 NCAA tournament journey against the No. 18 ranked Texas A&M on Friday at 2 p.m. The first-round match will be played in Fort Worth, as the No. 2 TCU hosts the regional round at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center. The winner gets either UT Arlington or the No. 2 seed TCU in the second round on Saturday, May 6 at 4 p.m. Tickets for all three matches will be available for purchase at the main entry gate to the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center for $5 (cash only).
The Mustangs enter the NCAA tournament after securing their second straight American Athletic Conference Men's Tennis Championship on Apr. 23. The No. 4 seed SMU became the lowest seeded team to win the championship. SMU commenced its stay in the tournament with a 4-2 victory over the No. 5 seed Tulsa on Apr. 21. The Mustangs then outlasted the No. 1 seed Memphis 4-3 on Apr. 22 to secure their spot in the grand finale. SMU fought tooth and nail against the No. 2 seed Tulane as they earned a 4-3 decision on Apr. 23 at the USTA National Campus to collect their second straight AAC title.
In the final batch of ITA rankings, SMU moved five spots to the No. 46 ranked team in the nation. Adam Neff moves to the No. 70 ITA singles player which earned him a spot to compete in the NCAA Singles Championship. Neff and doubles partner Pranav Kumar close out the Mustangs rankings as the No. 76 ranked doubles duo in the nation.
The No. 18 Aggies earn their 29th straight NCAA postseason appearance. Texas A&M is coming off a top five finish in the SEC regular season, and a trip to the conference tournament semifinals where they fell 4-0 to the No. 4 seed Georgia. The Aggies enter the final ITA rankings as the No. 18 team in the nation. A pair of Aggies qualified to compete at the NCAA Singles Championship: Noah Schachter and Raphael Perot. Shachter is the No. 50-ranked player in the ITA rankings followed by Perot ranked at No. 60.
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INSIDE THE MATCH
The Mustangs and Aggies met last year during the regular season as SMU pulled off a dramatic 4-3 road win over then No. 18 Texas A&M on Feb. 27, 2022. That 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.
Series History: Texas A&M
All time:Â Texas A&M leads 4-1
Home Records:Â 0-0
Away Records:Â 1-2
Neutral Records: 0-2
First Meeting:Â 4-1, Texas A&M May. 10, 2008
Last Meeting:Â 4-3, SMU Feb. 27, 2022
Current Winning Streak:Â W1 SMU
Should the Mustangs win their first-round match, they would meet either UT Arlington for the 27th time in program history or the No. 2 seed TCU for the 63rd time between the two programs. SMU holds a 24-2 record over the Mavericks including a 6-0 sweep in the last meeting on Mar. 1, 2021 in Dallas. The Horned Frogs and Mustangs have met once this year already renewing their rivalry match. TCU holds a 35-27 record over SMU. The Mustangs look to gain their highest ranked win over the season with a defeat over TCU who is ranked No. 2 in the ITA rankings.
MUSTANG MARK
No. 70 ranked Adam Neff was selected to compete in the upcoming NCAA Singles Championship. This is Neff's first appearance in the tournament. In the 2023 season, the No. 70 ranked Neff led the Mustangs to their second AAC Championship as he competed in the top singles and doubles positions. Neff went 16-3 throughout the season including seven victories over ranked players earning him AAC Player of the Week on Mar. 21. Neff has maintained an ITA ranking in the top-70 since Mar. 22.
Neff and doubles partner, Pranav Kumar are the No. 76 ranked doubles team in the nation. Neff and Kumar hold three ranked victories together. The duo went 2-1 over the AAC tournament in doubles play.
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Pranav Kumar holds an even 10-10 record in dual matches this spring. Kumar picked up his biggest wins of the spring in the AAC Championship as he was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Performer after he was a combined 5-1 in singles and doubles, including singles victories in all three wins.
Liam Krall and Callaway Clark hold a 3-2 record together as a doubles duo. Krall and Clark picked up their most significant doubles victory of the spring on Court 2. It appeared Fynn Kuenkler and Luc Hoeijmans of Tulane were on their way to a quick victory over the SMU duo as they led 5-2 with a chance to close out the match. Krall and Clark had a sequence of holds and breaks over the next four games giving themselves a chance to serve out the match at 6-5. Serving on the ad side, Clark bombed an ace out wide resulting in the seven-game comeback and the doubles clinch for the Mustangs in the finals of the AAC Championship.
Julian Steinhausen picked up two of the biggest wins over the AAC Championship as he kept the Mustangs hopes alive with two wins as the team score was tied at 3-3. Steinhausen delivered a three-set triumph to clinch the match over Adham Gaber of Tulsa in the quarterfinals on Court 4. The following day Steinhausen had another three-set victory over Memphis in the semifinals to give SMU a shot to compete for back-to-back titles.
Steinahusen and doubles partner, Antonio Muniz-Hidalgo move to 5-1 after clinching the doubles point for the Mustangs against Tulsa in the quarterfinals of the AAC Championship.
Antonio Muniz-Hidalgo holds an 17-11 record throughout the season. Muniz-Hidalgo went 2-1 over the AAC Championship. Muniz-Hidalgo picked up the match-clincher in the Mustangs biggest win of the season, over then No. 21 Cornell.
Louis Cloud improves to four match-clinchers with a victory against Tulane in the biggest win of his career. Cloud came back from one set down. In the deciding third set, Cloud won the last three games, including the last nine points of the match, to break a 3-3 tie and give SMU the 4-3 win. Since fall 2022, Cloud has gone 18-14.
Liam Krall got the match-clincher against No. 59 Rice as he rallied back from a tight 5-7 opening set loss on Court 2 to Wed Barnett, forcing a deciding third set with a 6-1 second set rally. Krall remained in complete control of the third set with a 6-2 win giving SMU the ranked road win. Krall was the first court off with a straight set victory in SMU's final regular season match against then No. 60 Florida Atlantic.
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SMU IN THE ITA RANKINGS
ITA Team Ranking (April 25 ranking)
46 SMU
Men's Singles (April 25 ranking)
70 Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (April 25 ranking)
76 Pranav Kumar/ Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (April 18 ranking)
51 SMU
Men's Singles (April 18 ranking)
65Â Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (April 18 ranking)
68Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (April 11 ranking)
52 SMU
Men's Singles (April 11 ranking)
66Â Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (April 11 ranking)
66Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (April 4 ranking)
55 SMU
Men's Singles (April 4 ranking)
66Â Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (April 4 ranking)
57Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (March 28 ranking)
50 SMU
ITA Team Ranking (March 21 ranking)
47 SMU
Men's Singles (March 14 ranking)
64Â Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (March 14 ranking)
69Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (March 14 ranking)
50 SMU
ITA Team Ranking (February 28 ranking)
Â
75 SMU
ITA Team Ranking (February 21 ranking)
Â
68Â SMU
Â
Men's Doubles (February 21 ranking)
Â
55Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
Â
Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center – Fort Worth, Texas 2 p.m. | Friday, May 5
Tickets
Season Stats Live Stats | Live Stream
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram SMU Mobile App | Apple | Google Play
Â
FORT WORTH, Texas (SMU)- The No. 46 SMU men's tennis will begin their 2023 NCAA tournament journey against the No. 18 ranked Texas A&M on Friday at 2 p.m. The first-round match will be played in Fort Worth, as the No. 2 TCU hosts the regional round at the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center. The winner gets either UT Arlington or the No. 2 seed TCU in the second round on Saturday, May 6 at 4 p.m. Tickets for all three matches will be available for purchase at the main entry gate to the Bayard H. Friedman Tennis Center for $5 (cash only).
The Mustangs enter the NCAA tournament after securing their second straight American Athletic Conference Men's Tennis Championship on Apr. 23. The No. 4 seed SMU became the lowest seeded team to win the championship. SMU commenced its stay in the tournament with a 4-2 victory over the No. 5 seed Tulsa on Apr. 21. The Mustangs then outlasted the No. 1 seed Memphis 4-3 on Apr. 22 to secure their spot in the grand finale. SMU fought tooth and nail against the No. 2 seed Tulane as they earned a 4-3 decision on Apr. 23 at the USTA National Campus to collect their second straight AAC title.
In the final batch of ITA rankings, SMU moved five spots to the No. 46 ranked team in the nation. Adam Neff moves to the No. 70 ITA singles player which earned him a spot to compete in the NCAA Singles Championship. Neff and doubles partner Pranav Kumar close out the Mustangs rankings as the No. 76 ranked doubles duo in the nation.
The No. 18 Aggies earn their 29th straight NCAA postseason appearance. Texas A&M is coming off a top five finish in the SEC regular season, and a trip to the conference tournament semifinals where they fell 4-0 to the No. 4 seed Georgia. The Aggies enter the final ITA rankings as the No. 18 team in the nation. A pair of Aggies qualified to compete at the NCAA Singles Championship: Noah Schachter and Raphael Perot. Shachter is the No. 50-ranked player in the ITA rankings followed by Perot ranked at No. 60.
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INSIDE THE MATCH
The Mustangs and Aggies met last year during the regular season as SMU pulled off a dramatic 4-3 road win over then No. 18 Texas A&M on Feb. 27, 2022. That 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.
Series History: Texas A&M
All time:Â Texas A&M leads 4-1
Home Records:Â 0-0
Away Records:Â 1-2
Neutral Records: 0-2
First Meeting:Â 4-1, Texas A&M May. 10, 2008
Last Meeting:Â 4-3, SMU Feb. 27, 2022
Current Winning Streak:Â W1 SMU
Should the Mustangs win their first-round match, they would meet either UT Arlington for the 27th time in program history or the No. 2 seed TCU for the 63rd time between the two programs. SMU holds a 24-2 record over the Mavericks including a 6-0 sweep in the last meeting on Mar. 1, 2021 in Dallas. The Horned Frogs and Mustangs have met once this year already renewing their rivalry match. TCU holds a 35-27 record over SMU. The Mustangs look to gain their highest ranked win over the season with a defeat over TCU who is ranked No. 2 in the ITA rankings.
MUSTANG MARK
No. 70 ranked Adam Neff was selected to compete in the upcoming NCAA Singles Championship. This is Neff's first appearance in the tournament. In the 2023 season, the No. 70 ranked Neff led the Mustangs to their second AAC Championship as he competed in the top singles and doubles positions. Neff went 16-3 throughout the season including seven victories over ranked players earning him AAC Player of the Week on Mar. 21. Neff has maintained an ITA ranking in the top-70 since Mar. 22.
Neff and doubles partner, Pranav Kumar are the No. 76 ranked doubles team in the nation. Neff and Kumar hold three ranked victories together. The duo went 2-1 over the AAC tournament in doubles play.
Â
Pranav Kumar holds an even 10-10 record in dual matches this spring. Kumar picked up his biggest wins of the spring in the AAC Championship as he was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Performer after he was a combined 5-1 in singles and doubles, including singles victories in all three wins.
Liam Krall and Callaway Clark hold a 3-2 record together as a doubles duo. Krall and Clark picked up their most significant doubles victory of the spring on Court 2. It appeared Fynn Kuenkler and Luc Hoeijmans of Tulane were on their way to a quick victory over the SMU duo as they led 5-2 with a chance to close out the match. Krall and Clark had a sequence of holds and breaks over the next four games giving themselves a chance to serve out the match at 6-5. Serving on the ad side, Clark bombed an ace out wide resulting in the seven-game comeback and the doubles clinch for the Mustangs in the finals of the AAC Championship.
Julian Steinhausen picked up two of the biggest wins over the AAC Championship as he kept the Mustangs hopes alive with two wins as the team score was tied at 3-3. Steinhausen delivered a three-set triumph to clinch the match over Adham Gaber of Tulsa in the quarterfinals on Court 4. The following day Steinhausen had another three-set victory over Memphis in the semifinals to give SMU a shot to compete for back-to-back titles.
Steinahusen and doubles partner, Antonio Muniz-Hidalgo move to 5-1 after clinching the doubles point for the Mustangs against Tulsa in the quarterfinals of the AAC Championship.
Antonio Muniz-Hidalgo holds an 17-11 record throughout the season. Muniz-Hidalgo went 2-1 over the AAC Championship. Muniz-Hidalgo picked up the match-clincher in the Mustangs biggest win of the season, over then No. 21 Cornell.
Louis Cloud improves to four match-clinchers with a victory against Tulane in the biggest win of his career. Cloud came back from one set down. In the deciding third set, Cloud won the last three games, including the last nine points of the match, to break a 3-3 tie and give SMU the 4-3 win. Since fall 2022, Cloud has gone 18-14.
Liam Krall got the match-clincher against No. 59 Rice as he rallied back from a tight 5-7 opening set loss on Court 2 to Wed Barnett, forcing a deciding third set with a 6-1 second set rally. Krall remained in complete control of the third set with a 6-2 win giving SMU the ranked road win. Krall was the first court off with a straight set victory in SMU's final regular season match against then No. 60 Florida Atlantic.
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SMU IN THE ITA RANKINGS
ITA Team Ranking (April 25 ranking)
46 SMU
Men's Singles (April 25 ranking)
70 Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (April 25 ranking)
76 Pranav Kumar/ Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (April 18 ranking)
51 SMU
Men's Singles (April 18 ranking)
65Â Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (April 18 ranking)
68Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (April 11 ranking)
52 SMU
Men's Singles (April 11 ranking)
66Â Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (April 11 ranking)
66Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (April 4 ranking)
55 SMU
Men's Singles (April 4 ranking)
66Â Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (April 4 ranking)
57Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (March 28 ranking)
50 SMU
ITA Team Ranking (March 21 ranking)
47 SMU
Men's Singles (March 14 ranking)
64Â Adam Neff
Men's Doubles (March 14 ranking)
69Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
ITA Team Ranking (March 14 ranking)
50 SMU
ITA Team Ranking (February 28 ranking)
Â
75 SMU
ITA Team Ranking (February 21 ranking)
Â
68Â SMU
Â
Men's Doubles (February 21 ranking)
Â
55Â Pranav Kumar/Â Adam Neff
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Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
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/ Men's Tennis
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/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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Sunday, October 04
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Saturday, October 03
