Cowboy Tennis Defeats UCF, Advances to Big 12 Semifinals

Friday, April 19

Stillwater, OK

3 p.m. CT

Oklahoma State University

UCF

April 19, 2024 | Cowboy Tennis

Box Score (PDF)

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State's men's tennis team defeated fourth-seeded Central Florida, 4-2, in the Big 12 Championship quarterfinals on Friday afternoon at the Greenwood Tennis Center.

With the win, OSU improved to 17-8 on the season and will play in the Big 12 semifinals for the second straight season. The victory also avenged the Cowboys' 4-3 loss to the Knights on March 28 in Orlando. UCF falls to 18-4 and 5-2 in conference play.

The action started with doubles play where the Pokes rolled. Starting on court three, OSU's Leighton Allen and Alessio Basille defeated Liam Branger and Paul Colin, 6-3. This was the first win for the pairing in 2024.

On center court, the Pokes clinched the doubles point with a dominant win from No. 15 Tyler Zink and Isaac Becroft. The top-15 duo defeated UCF's Lleyton Cronje and Santiago Giamichelle, 6-3. The pairing is now 4-0 on the campaign.

Alex Garcia and Francisco Pini's match against Knight's Francisco Llanes and Emilio Sanchez went unfinished with the doubles point having been captured.

Singles action featured more of the same for OSU. Starting on court two, No. 85 Becroft kept the momentum from doubles play and defeated Llanes in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. Next, No. 23 Zink took his team-high 16th singles win against No. 123 Cronje, 6-2, 6-4. The win marked Zink's sixth against a ranked opponent this season.

The Knights then began to gain momentum, starting on court five where Basile fell to Giamichelle, 6-3, 7-5. On court six, Pini lost a back-and-forth match against Mehdi Benchakroun in three sets, 1-6, 6-1, 1-6, to pull UCF within one.

Freshman phenom Erik Schiessl was the one to finish off the Knights. He took down Branger, 7-6(3), 6-4, for his freshman-leading 12th singles win and clinched the match for OSU. With the match settled, Garcia went unfinished against No. 108 Colin in the third set.

Oklahoma State men's tennis is back in action tomorrow afternoon as it takes on top-seed Texas in the Big 12 semifinals at 3 p.m. at the Greenwood Tennis Center.

For season-long coverage of Oklahoma State men's tennis, visit okstate.com or follow @CowboyTennis on social media.

[5] Oklahoma State 4, [4] UCF 2
Singles competition
1. No. 23 Tyler Zink (OSU) def. No. 123 Lleyton Cronje (UCF) 6-2, 6-4
2. No. 85 Isaac Becroft (OSU) def. Francisco Llanes (UCF) 6-1, 6-2
3. No. 96 Alex Garcia (OSU) vs. No. 108 Paul Colin (UCF) 7-6(5), 1-6, 1-3, unf.
4. Erik Schiessl (OSU) def. Liam Branger (UCF) 7-6(3), 6-4
5. Santiago Giamichelle (UCF) def. Alessio Basile (OSU) 6-3, 7-5
6. Mehdi Benchakroun (UCF) def. Francisco Pini (OSU) 1-6, 6-1, 1-6
Doubles competition
1. No. 15 Tyler Zink/Isaac Becroft (OSU) def. Lleyton Cronje/Santiago Giamichelle (UCF) 6-3
2. Alex Garcia/Francisco Pini (OSU) vs. Francisco Llanes/Emilio Sanchez (UCF) 3-5
3. Leighton Allen/Alessio Basile (OSU) def. Liam Branger/Paul Colin (UCF) 6-3

Order of finish:
Doubles (3,1); Singles (2,1,5,6,4)