Michigan
Nevada
Michigan to Host ITA Kick-Off at Varsity Tennis Center
1/24/2024 12:38:00 PM | Men's Tennis
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 14-ranked University of Michigan men's tennis team (1-1) is set to host the ITA Kick-Off on Saturday and Sunday (Jan. 27-28) at the Varsity Tennis Center. Admission is free to all matches.
The Wolverines will take on Nevada on Saturday (Jan. 27) at 9 a.m., while No. 9 Stanford and Memphis are set to compete at noon. On Sunday (Jan. 28), the consolation match is scheduled for 10 a.m., and Saturday's winners will play at 2 p.m. seeking a spot in the ITA National Indoor Championships (Feb. 16-19).
Notes
• At 15 sites this weekend, the No. 1 team at each site will face the No. 4 team, while the No. 2 faces the No. 3. Two matches are guaranteed -- the winners/losers will play the following day. The winning team of each site, along with host Columbia University, will be invited to play at the ITA National Team Indoor Championship, Feb. 16-19 in New York City.
• This is the fourth time Michigan has hosted the ITA Kick-Off (2019, 2021, 2023). Last season, Michigan topped Cal Poly and Northwestern by matching 4-0 scores to advance. In 2019, Michigan fell to Baylor in the second match, and in 2021, the second match was canceled when the U-M Athletics instituted a department-wide activity pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The Wolverines have won the ITA Kick-Off three times, including last season; Michigan also won in 2009 and in 2020. The program has reached the semifinals of the ITA National Indoors twice, in 2020 and 2023.
• Saturday's match will be the first-ever meeting with Nevada. The Wolf Pack are 1-0 this season after an 11-8 season last spring. They lost both of their ITA Kick-Off matches in 2023 at Virginia. Michigan is 2-4 against Stanford and is 2-0 against Memphis
• Michigan remains ranked No. 14 in the ITA coaches poll with a 1-1 record. The Wolverines nearly knocked off No. 6 Tennessee on the road last Thursday (Jan. 18) in a match that came down to No. 1 singles.
• Jacob Bickersteth and Patorn Hanchaikul are both 2-0 in their dual singles matches. Hanchaikul has won five straight matches after starting 0-3. Bickersteth has collected the most wins on the team, with 11.
• Gavin Young, ranked No. 9 in singles, has a 5-3 record against ranked opponents this season. Eight of his 12 opponents have been ranked and he has claimed wins over Nos. 1, 12, 15, 22 and 81.
Ranked Singles
• No. 9 Gavin Young (Michigan)
• No. 37 Samir Banerjee (Stanford)
• No. 53 Neel Rajesh (Stanford)
• No. 61 Jacob Bickersteth (Michigan)
• No. 80 Pau Fanlo (Memphis)
Ranked Doubles
• No. 31 Gavin Young/Nino Ehrenschneider (Michigan)
Players Mentioned
