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Men's tennis squad passes its first test

TAMPA -- The University of South Florida's men's tennis team didn't have to wait long to be challenged this season.

Sure, the Bulls opened the season with relatively easy victories against Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman College, but then they took on South Alabama on Jan. 24 in their third match of the season.

New opponent, same result -- eventually.

USF faced a sterner opponent in the Jaguars, ranked 17th in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association poll at the time, losing in No. 1 and No. 2 singles before rallying to take the match 5-2 and improve to 3-0.

"It was a real good test for us," said USF coach Don Barr. "I think we handled it well."

After opening the match with two wins and a loss in doubles play, the 28th-ranked Bulls quickly found themselves trailing for the first time when No. 1 Paco Antelo and No. 2 Uli Kiendl each suffered three-set losses in singles play. Antelo retired due to cramps in a 6-4, 4-6, 6-5 setback to South Alabama's Kosta Zinchanka. Kiendl lost 2-6, 7-6, 6-3 to Vincent Baudat.

"Their (South Alabama) No. 1 was a very strong player," Barr said. "And Paco played tough and they both were cramping, but unfortunately, Paco went out first."

But things quickly turned as No. 3 Martin Wetzel's victory against Christian Thall proved to be the crucial turning point of the match. In his first match since returning from a quadricep muscle injury, Wetzel won a 6-7, 6-3, 7-6 (10-8) decision that needed a third-set tiebreaker. His effort rubbed off as the Bulls took the Nos. 4, 5 and 6 singles matches with Dan McCain, Nadim Naser and Jorge Escallon, respectively.

"Uli is a freshman and he is coming along well," said Barr. "He is a tough kid and a tough player. And Martin Wetzel is playing well also. He really came up big for us."

The road doesn't get any easier for the Bulls, who will face the University of Florida on Sunday at the USF Tennis Courts at noon.

USF is 3-36 against the Gators but did beat them 4-3 last year in Gainesville. The 37th-ranked Gators are 2-0 and coming off a 5-1 win against UCF and a 6-1 win against Furman last weekend.

"That's going to be a real good test for us," said Barr. "We really played them well last year up there and it is a kind of a rivalry for us, so I'm sure they're coming down here with the idea of beating us."

That has Barr as excited as his players. The Bulls, who retained the bulk of last year's team and have infused that with new players McCain and Kiendl, are coming off an NCAA Tournament appearance in an emotional season that saw Barr take time off after suffering a heart attack.

Healthy again and optimistic about the season, Barr is happy with this squad.

"This is a hard-working group of players," he said. "They are real strong, very bright guys and well-disciplined. It's just a matter of time to see how well they can do."

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