<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0JZWW3_0snlYFeU00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0JZWW3_0snlYFeU00" width="1200" height="800" ><figcaption>Texas A&amp;M’s Togan Tokac reacts after scoring a point against Rice on Friday in the NCAA Men’s Tennis Tournament at Mitchell Tennis Center. CHRIS SWANN, SPECIAL TO THE EAGLE</figcaption></figure>Victories kept slipping away for the Texas A&amp;M men’s tennis team late in the season. But the 15th-ranked Aggies never let up in a dominant 4-0 victory over Rice in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night.The Aggies, who were ranked as high as eighth in the country this season, staggered into the NCAA tourney on a five-match losing streak. That seemingly ended their chances of hosting the first two rounds of the event, but things fell just right and A&amp;M was able to host at the Mitchell Tennis Center.A&amp;M took advantage by taking the doubles point and then grabbing a trio of single victories in straight sets all ending within 12 minutes of each other. A&amp;M junior Luke Casper put a bow on the match by defeating Kaberr Kapasi 6-1, 6-2 on the sixth line, ending the match in two hours.“I just think our guys came with a lot of determination tonight,” A&amp;M coach Steve Denton said. “We got off to a real good start in doubles, we were real energetic. You know sometimes in these matches, if you don’t finish a team off, then this kind of comes back and bites you. I kind of preached before this match, we needed to finish.”<h2>People are also reading…</h2>A&amp;M did just that.Junior Giulio Perego and sophomore Togan Tokac, ranked 14th in doubles, breezed by 35th-ranked Kabeer Kapasi and Yasha Zemel 6-1 on court one. Rice was putting up a fight in the other two doubles matches, but senior Raphael Perot and freshman Tiago Pires finished off Artus de la Bassetiere and Santiago Navarro 6-3 on court three.That momentum carried over into singles with A&amp;M winning the first set on every court but one.“We were able to continue that in the second set and not really give the other team an opportunity. And I think that was the mindset that we needed,” Denton said.A&amp;M (19-10) took a 2-0 lead as Perego defeated de la Bassetiere 6-3, 6-2 on the third line. Perot, who is ranked 20th, followed with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Yasha Zemel on the top line. And after the fans and players celebrated Perot’s win, Casper capped it off.“We know what we can achieve,” Perego said. “We had really good energy. I think from the beginning, we never really gave them a chance. We stepped on them and just kept going on the gas without taking a break.”In recent weeks, A&amp;M found a way to lose close games and then sets, which led to losing matches.“I think when we got ahead in some games there was some crucial moments in matches where maybe in the last few matches, we had let people stay in sets,” Denton said. “We didn’t let them do that tonight.”The Aggies kept their focus throughout.“I think it was more of a team effort, just because a lot of the guys were cognizant of the fact that they needed to not just play a set, but they needed to get off to a good start again in the second set and finish their guy,” Denton said.Perego was the first to finish in both singles and doubles.“I thought specifically, Giulio he played really, really well and played one of his better matches that I’ve seen in awhile and that was really great to see,” Denton said. “I think that will obviously give the team some confidence going forward tomorrow.”Perego snapped a frustrating four-match losing streak in singles when he started to feel uncomfortable on the courts.“My end of the season was not great,” Perego said. “It was really good [to win tonight]. I think these last couple of weeks, everybody on the team put in a lot of work because we know it’s our last chance to do something special with this group of guys.”A&amp;M advances to play 18th-ranked San Diego (23-2), which defeated Baylor 4-1. Saturday’s second-round match is at 4 p.m. with the winner advancing to super regionals.“We need to carry that [mindset] forward to tomorrow, because San Diego is a really good team,” Denton said.A&amp;M lost at San Diego last year 4-3 in nonconference action. Rice, making its first NCAA appearance since 2017, ends at 17-9.“It's tough when you're a third seed and you play the top seed sometimes, but I don't think I would have drawn it up any other way,” Rice coach Efe Ustundag said. “We ran into a really good A&amp;M team. Yes, they were on a five-match losing streak, but they certainly did not play like it today. Hats off to them. They outplayed us in some spots.”The start of the match was delayed five hours because of the weather.“I think probably it was an advantage for us in that our guys got to go back to their apartment and relax and be in their setting,” Denton said. “It’s probably a little tougher on the road team, they’re here, waiting and when they do have to come out it’s not easy.”No. 15 seed A&amp;M 4, Rice 0Singles#20 Raphael Perot, A&amp;M, def. Yasha Zemel 6-4, 6-2; #42 JC Roddick, A&amp;M, vs. Trinity Grear 6-3, 4-3, DNF; Giulio Perego, A&amp;M, def. Arthus de la Bassetiere 6-3, 6-2; Emir Sendogan, Rice, vs. Togan Tokac 6-4, 0-0, DNF; Tiago Pires, A&amp;M, vs. Petro Kuzmenok 6-3, 2-6, 0-0, DNF; Luke Casper, A&amp;M, def. Kabeer Kapasi 6-1, 6-2. Order of finish: 3, 1, 6*Doubles#14 Perego/Tokac, A&amp;M, def. #35 Kapasi/Zemel 6-1; Grear/Kuzmenok, Rice, vs. Roddick/Lathan Skrobarcek 5-4, DNF; Perot/Pires, A&amp;M, def. de la Bassetiere/Santiago Navarro 6-3. Order of finish: 1, 3*</div></body>

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A&M men's tennis opens NCAA play with 4-0 blitzing of Rice

Victories kept slipping away for the Texas A&M men’s tennis team late in the season. But the 15th-ranked Aggies never let up in a dominant 4-0 victory over Rice in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night. The Aggies, who were ranked as high as eighth...

A&M men's tennis opens NCAA play with 4-0 blitzing of Rice

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