UT Arlington Earns Finals Sweep To Win 2023 WAC Men's Tennis Championship
ARLINGTON, Texas – Undisputed was the word of the day as the No. 1 UT Arlington (UTA) Mavericks rolled to a 4-0 victory over the No. 2 Abilene Christian (ACU) Wildcats in the men’s Western Athletic Conference Tournament championship match Saturday at the Arlington Tennis Center.
The victory completed a conference season in which the Mavericks went unbeaten against WAC opponents and punched their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
The Mavericks swiftly got into the driver’s seat by winning the first two doubles matches, playing with a lot of energy and an up-tempo attack. UTA’s duo of Lachlan Robertson and Joan Torres Espinosa made quick work of the No. 3 match, winning 6-2.
The No. 2 match started off tight with the Wildcats and Mavericks swapping points early. But UTA’s Santiago Giamichelle and Dante Teramo were strong on the net to control the back end of the bout and secure the 1-0 lead with a 6-3 win. ACU’s Mihaly Deli and Daniel Morozov fought off match points to force deuce point, but a big serve from UTA was the nail in the coffin.
UT Arlington took that momentum and the energy from the decidedly home crowd to set the tone in the singles session. The Mavericks won the first set on four courts and quickly increased their lead to 2-0 with a 6-0, 6-2 win by Espinosa in the No. 6 match.
After good wins in the opening sets, UTA’s Anton Shepp and Giamichelle took control in the second frames on the first and second courts, respectively. Shepp opened up a 4-1 lead in the No. 1 flight, engaging with the heavy Mavericks crowd after scores. Giamichelle jumped out to a 5-1 advantage at No. 2.
Morozov gave a good effort to get one game back on court two, but a shot carried long and Giamichelle claimed a 6-3, 6-2 win to draw a loud cheer from the crowd as UTA went up 3-0 as Shepp also took a 5-2 lead at No. 1, putting a stop to Dario Kmet’s rally.
Phones went up throughout the crowd as Shepp toed the service line up 40-15. A big serve led to an ACU shot sailing long, and a roar erupted as the Mavericks clinched the title and the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. UTA heads to the postseason as the WAC’s regular season and conference champion.
2023 WAC Men’s Tennis All-Tournament Team
Singles:
Anton Shepp (UTA)
Santiago Giamichelle (UTA)
Cesar Barranquero (ACU)
Dario Kmet (ACU)
Daniel Morozov (ACU)
Joan Torres Espinosa (UTA)
Doubles
Giamichelle/Teramo (UTA)
Barranquero/Kmet (ACU)
Burnel/Devald (UTRGV)