Championship Central
 
Updated Bracket

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Saturday’s semifinal action at The Racquet Club of Memphis set up a battle between top seeds for the Men’s Tennis Championship, as No. 1 Memphis and No. 2 USF earned victories. USF dispatched of No. 3 Louisville by a 4-1 margin, while Memphis blanked No. 5 SMU 4-0.  
 
USF opened its match by clinching the doubles point, winning with its two ranked pairs at No.1 and No.2 doubles. No. 81 Oliver Pramming and Ignacio Gonzalez-Muniz handled their opponents for an 8-2 victory, while No. 41 Roberto Cid and Sasha Gozun went to a tiebreak to defeat Louisville’s Wagner and Simich 8-7 (5).
 
Louisville’s Chris Simich evened the match at 1-1, winning 6-3, 6-1 on court 4. USF quickly answered at No.1 singles, with No. 43 Roberto Cid winning 6-0, 6-4. The Bulls expanded on their lead with a 6-1, 6-3 win by Sasha Gozun at No. 3 singles, and then finished off the Cardinals with a 6-4, 7-5 win at No. 5 by Ignacio Gonzalez-Muniz.
 
In the second semifinal, top-seeded Memphis shut out No. 5 SMU to set up a meeting with the Bulls in the Championship Finals. After a tight doubles clash, the Tigers did not drop a set in singles to ensure the victory.
 
The doubles was a battle, coming down to the final game at No.2 doubles. SMU struck first by upsetting Memphis’ No. 8 ranked pair of O’Hare and Salisbury, as the Mustangs’ Mischa Nowicki and Arkidjas Slobodkins scored an 8-5 victory. The Tigers responded with an 8-5 win by Ian Chadwell and Johnny Grimal, forcing the decision to court two. Connor Glennon and Cedric De Zutter came through with an 8-6 win to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
 
In singles No. 65 Connor Glennon increased the Memphis lead to 2-0 with a win by a 6-2, 3-0 (retired) score. David O’Hare followed for the Tigers by cruising to a 6-0, 6-1 win and Ian Chadwell won the clinching match for the Tigers with a 6-2, 6-4 victory.  
 
The finals on Sunday will begin at 12 p.m. Central Time. Memphis, ranked No. 21 in the nation, defeated No. 26 USF 4-3 in their previous meeting in the schools’ regular season finale. Sunday’s winner will earn the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Men’s Tennis Tournament.
 
Team Results - Day One
 
No. 2 USF 4, No. 3 Louisville 1
No. 1 Memphis 4, No. 5 SMU 0