The Longhorns are back in the Final Four of the men's outdoor NCAA tournament.
The Texas Longhorns men's tennis program has been in this position before - playing in what is their sixth straight Elite Eight match of the outdoor NCAA tournament - and the nation's top-ranked team handled business as such.
No. 1 Texas rolled past No. 11 Baylor 4-1 on Thursday to advance to the Final Four round in Athens, Georgia.
The Horns, once again, will be stepping into familiar territory, playing in the program's fourth Final Four in a row. Overall, this is the ninth Final Four berth for Texas since the adoption of the current bracket format in 1977.
“First of all, I have to congratulate Baylor on a great season and a great run to get here," said Texas coach Bruce Berque after the match. "Getting to the quarterfinals is no small task. Getting to the round of 16 in the NCAA is no small task. Baylor’s had a pretty special season; they’ve knocked off some of the best teams in the country, so we knew we had our hands full. I was pretty impressed with the way Baylor competed, the class that they showed. Congratulations to them for getting here."
The Bears started the match with a one-point advantage after doubles, winning on lines 1 and 3 and putting the pressure on the Longhorns.
Texas responded in a big way, winning all four necessary singles matches and leaving two unfinished to punch their ticket into the national semifinals once again.
No. 41-ranked player Kalin Ivanovski won 6-3, 6-1 No. 2, and No. 4 Oliver Ojakaar won by the same score. No. 35-ranked Sebastian Eriksson got a 6-2, 6-2 victory on No. 3 to put the Horns one match away.
On line No. 6, Lucas Marionneau needed a third set, but pulled out the clinching win 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.
"I would also say I’m really proud of our team," Berque said. "It was a pretty typical match in some ways. I was just thinking about it. We had a couple guys play great, we had a couple guys play bad, and we had a couple guys do some of both. That’s the most common thing you see in a tennis match.
"It’s not about playing our best tennis, but it’s about being composed, about being coachable, about staying connected with each other, showing great enthusiasm and playing hard. I was proud of our team for being able to do that against a very good team today."
With the clinch on his racket, the freshman Marionneau spoke about how he managed his nerves down the stretch.
"It’s really special. We [know] it’s the last tournament of the year. We have some seniors here, we know it’s the last time for them," he said. "It was tough at the start. I was a little tired, just watching the other guys, thinking about only the win. I started enjoying, and it was so much better at the end."
No. 2-seeded Texas advances to face either 6-seed TCU or 3-seed Ohio State in the Final Four on Saturday.
The Longhorns - back in familiar territory - look to build on what the freshman has recognized as an expectation of excellence in Austin.
"It’s a different stage. It is huge, honestly," Marionneau said of the tournament atmosphere.
"When you play for Texas, I would say it’s tough, but I would say it is the standard. We have probably the best program of college tennis, so it’s the standard. So, we are really happy, but we want more."
