Wake Forest Athletics
Photo by: Brian Westerholt/Sports On Film
Botzer Pulls Off First-Round Upset at NCAA Singles Championship
5/20/2019 8:33:00 PM | Men's Tennis
Bar Botzer defeated 18th-ranked Maxime Cressy in the opening round of the tournament
ORLANDO, Fla. – Wake Forest's Bar Botzer secured a spot in the Round of 32 of the NCAA Singles Championship following an upset victory over UCLA's Maxime Cressy in the opening round. Botzer, ranked 50th in the country, upended the 18th-ranked Bruin, 6-4, 6-2.
Botzer, making his NCAA Singles Championship debut, advances to Tuesday's Round of 32 where he will face either Mississippi's Tim Sandkaulen or Florida State's Lucas Poullain.
Neither player broke serve during the first eight service games in the match until Botzer broke Cressy on the deuce point to take a 5-4 lead in the opening set. Botzer nearly gave the break right back, trailing 15-40 in the ensuing game, but won three consecutive points to take the set, 6-4.
The sophomore from Tel Aviv, Israel then broke for a 2-1 lead in the second set before earning his third break of the match to go ahead 4-1. After a pair of holds, Botzer was serving for the match on a deuce point when Cressy, a No. 9-16 seed in the tournament, netted an overhead to seal the match.
With one more victory, Botzer would earn All-America status for the first time in his career. He looks to join Petros Chrysochos and Borna Gojo as Wake Forest All-Americans in 2019 after both players earned automatic honors by virtue of being seeded in the singles field. Chrysochos and Gojo will not compete in the tournament, however, as each player withdrew from competition prior to the start of play.
NCAA Singles Championship
R64 - #50 Bar Botzer (WF) def. #18 [9-16] Maxime Cressy (UCLA), 6-4, 6-2
Botzer, making his NCAA Singles Championship debut, advances to Tuesday's Round of 32 where he will face either Mississippi's Tim Sandkaulen or Florida State's Lucas Poullain.
Neither player broke serve during the first eight service games in the match until Botzer broke Cressy on the deuce point to take a 5-4 lead in the opening set. Botzer nearly gave the break right back, trailing 15-40 in the ensuing game, but won three consecutive points to take the set, 6-4.
The sophomore from Tel Aviv, Israel then broke for a 2-1 lead in the second set before earning his third break of the match to go ahead 4-1. After a pair of holds, Botzer was serving for the match on a deuce point when Cressy, a No. 9-16 seed in the tournament, netted an overhead to seal the match.
With one more victory, Botzer would earn All-America status for the first time in his career. He looks to join Petros Chrysochos and Borna Gojo as Wake Forest All-Americans in 2019 after both players earned automatic honors by virtue of being seeded in the singles field. Chrysochos and Gojo will not compete in the tournament, however, as each player withdrew from competition prior to the start of play.
NCAA Singles Championship
R64 - #50 Bar Botzer (WF) def. #18 [9-16] Maxime Cressy (UCLA), 6-4, 6-2
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