NEW ORLEANS – The Loyola University New Orleans men's tennis team played its second fall tournament over the weekend, with Wolf Pack student-athletes competing at the 2023 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Gulf Regional Championships.
Loyola joined seven other schools in the men's competition: Blue Mountain, Dillard, Mobile, Our Lady of the Lake, Texas A&M-Texarkana, William Carey, and Xavier. Most of the tournament, hosted by Xavier University, took place in Loyola's home courts at New Orleans City Park.
The Wolf Pack got a trio of wins in the main singles draw, starting with Hippolyte de Preville earning a dominant 6-1, 6-0 victory over a Texarkana player. Samuel Motazed's Round of 64 match was much more closely contested, as he won 7-6 (7-4), 5-7, 10-7 in a super tiebreak against a Dillard player. Remus Hebhang-Balan, who got a bye into the next round, also claimed a win in a super tiebreak in his Round of 32 match, 6-3, 4-6, 10-4.
All three Loyola winners in the main singles draw would go on to play the top three seeded players, dropping their matches in the next round.
In men's doubles, Herman Aure and Motazed won their match on Friday 8-5 to advance to the quarterfinals, but they ultimately fell against the No. 1 overall seeded team from Xavier.
Diego Rodriguez Tobar, who lost his first round singles matchup in a third set super tiebreak, went on to have a solid performance in the consolation draw. He defeated one player from Texarkana on Friday and two from OLLU on Saturday to reach the championship round, where his opponent withdrew. Spencer Matz also defeated an OLLU player in the back draw.
The fall schedule continues for the Wolf Pack men in October, with Dillard's fall invitational up next on Oct. 20.
"The men had some bright spots this weekend winning a few matches against solid players. It was great to see Diego Rodriguez Tobar find a good level and keep building through the consolation draw. He's struggled with injuries during his career, but is healthy and playing good tennis again. Unfortunately, his opponent had to withdraw in the back draw finals. We were excited for that match.
Remus Hebhang-Balan and Samuel Motazed are growing a lot and they played some good tennis. If they keep focusing on what we're working on, they will have an outstanding year. I'm really pleased with their progress.
This fall the men have to decide how good they want to become as a team. They need to find more positive leadership and maturity. Logan Bueche, Marc Fereres and I believe in them immensely. They can have a great year if they become focused on playing for each other and building a strong team environment."
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