SMU men’s tennis heads west to face Stanford and Cal after a historic upset of No. 8 Baylor, with star Trevor Svajda leading the charge.
The SMU men’s tennis team heads into a challenging West Coast road trip with momentum after one of the program’s biggest victories in decades. Ranked No. 36 nationally, the Mustangs will face No. 24 Stanford on Friday night before traveling to Berkeley to battle No. 56 California on Sunday as ACC play resumes.
SMU arrives in California riding high following a 4-2 upset over No. 8 Baylor, a win that carried significant historical weight for the program.
It marked the Mustangs’ first victory over the Bears since 2001 and their first win in Waco since 1996. The result also stands as the highest-ranked win under head coach Grant Chen, signaling a major step forward for the program.
Much of the Mustangs’ success has been driven by star player Trevor Svajda, who has been one of the most dominant singles competitors in college tennis this season. Svajda currently sits at No. 2 in the ITA singles rankings and owns an impressive 13-1 record this spring, dropping only two sets along the way.
The rising standout has also begun making waves beyond the college circuit. Earlier this week, Svajda competed in the prestigious ATP Masters 1000 event at Indian Wells, becoming the first SMU player since Richey Reneberg in 1999 to win a match at that level.
Svajda has consistently proven he can compete against elite talent, earning wins over several ranked opponents including Baylor’s No. 12 Devin Badenhorst, Ohio State’s No. 13 Aidan Kim, and Florida’s No. 54 Adhitya Ganesan.
The upcoming matchup against Stanford will feature another ranked challenge, as the Cardinal bring in standout singles players Hudson Rivera (No. 58) and Alex Chang (No. 113) along with one of the nation’s top-ranked doubles teams.
SMU has struggled historically against Stanford and California, but this year’s team appears poised to challenge that narrative.
If the Mustangs can carry the energy from their Baylor upset into this weekend, they could leave California with two more statement victories and strengthen their position in the national rankings.