Troy University Athletics
Friday, October 4
Macon, Ga.
Troy University
at
Mercer Bear Invitational
Men’s Tennis Begins Fall Season with Mercer Gridiron Classic
10/3/2024 2:08:00 PM | Tennis (M)
TROY, Ala. – The Troy men's tennis program sets its sights on the first of the fall tournament schedule with the Mercer Gridiron Classic, starting on Friday, Oct. 4, and ending on Sunday, Oct. 6, at the LeRoy Peddy Tennis Center.
"I'm looking forward to being in Macon for a good weekend," head coach Rolando Vargas said. "We're taking the whole team, so we're excited to have the opportunity to compete. It will be fascinating to see how we prepared physically and mentally. Doubles are going to be important to see our chemistry. We've had excellent practices before, and the energy seems really good, so this will be our first opportunity to send a message, and we'll see how it goes."
Troy opens the tournament with a full round of doubles and two rounds of singles on Friday. Saturday begins with two more rounds of doubles before returning to a singles round. The tournament ends Sunday with a single round of doubles and singles.
Tournament Information
What: Mercer Gridiron Classic
Where: Macon, Ga. – LeRoy Peddy Tennis Center
When: Friday, Oct. 4 – Sunday, Oct. 6
Who: Alabama State, Georgia College, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Middle Georgia State, Jacksonville State, Clemson, Furman, North Florida
Lineup
Luciano Alcocer, Yeray Andres Pastor, Vicente Arbelaez, Henrique de Brito, Hiiro Sakamoto, Nicolas Simkin
2023-24 Recap
2023-24 saw the Trojans top the charts as the No. 62 ranked team in ITA after accumulating a 19-7, 4-4 SBC record. The Lunsford Tennis Complex saw Troy dominate nearly every time, coming one match short of a perfect record at 12-1. In nonconference play, Mario Martinez Serrano won his 11th straight singles match to knock off No. 53 South Florida on the road while also sweeping Point, Alcorn (2x), AUM (2x) and Alabama A&M.
Despite the season ending early for the Trojans with an opening round loss to No. 3 Georgia State, 4-1, the program ended as the No. 9 ranked team in the ITA Southern Regional and 10th in final singles regional rankings (119th overall). Individually, Mario Martinez stayed in the top 100 for singles ranking – topped at 71st. Carles Anton and Andres Pastor also earned All-SBC Second Team for doubles, and Martinez Serrano got the Sun Belt Player to Watch for the second consecutive season – also earned All-Sun Belt First Team.
The team opens the 2024-25 campaign by introducing two freshmen, Henrique de Brito and Hiiro Sakamoto, to complete the seven-man roster.
"I'm looking forward to being in Macon for a good weekend," head coach Rolando Vargas said. "We're taking the whole team, so we're excited to have the opportunity to compete. It will be fascinating to see how we prepared physically and mentally. Doubles are going to be important to see our chemistry. We've had excellent practices before, and the energy seems really good, so this will be our first opportunity to send a message, and we'll see how it goes."
Troy opens the tournament with a full round of doubles and two rounds of singles on Friday. Saturday begins with two more rounds of doubles before returning to a singles round. The tournament ends Sunday with a single round of doubles and singles.
Tournament Information
What: Mercer Gridiron Classic
Where: Macon, Ga. – LeRoy Peddy Tennis Center
When: Friday, Oct. 4 – Sunday, Oct. 6
Who: Alabama State, Georgia College, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Middle Georgia State, Jacksonville State, Clemson, Furman, North Florida
Lineup
Luciano Alcocer, Yeray Andres Pastor, Vicente Arbelaez, Henrique de Brito, Hiiro Sakamoto, Nicolas Simkin
2023-24 Recap
2023-24 saw the Trojans top the charts as the No. 62 ranked team in ITA after accumulating a 19-7, 4-4 SBC record. The Lunsford Tennis Complex saw Troy dominate nearly every time, coming one match short of a perfect record at 12-1. In nonconference play, Mario Martinez Serrano won his 11th straight singles match to knock off No. 53 South Florida on the road while also sweeping Point, Alcorn (2x), AUM (2x) and Alabama A&M.
Despite the season ending early for the Trojans with an opening round loss to No. 3 Georgia State, 4-1, the program ended as the No. 9 ranked team in the ITA Southern Regional and 10th in final singles regional rankings (119th overall). Individually, Mario Martinez stayed in the top 100 for singles ranking – topped at 71st. Carles Anton and Andres Pastor also earned All-SBC Second Team for doubles, and Martinez Serrano got the Sun Belt Player to Watch for the second consecutive season – also earned All-Sun Belt First Team.
The team opens the 2024-25 campaign by introducing two freshmen, Henrique de Brito and Hiiro Sakamoto, to complete the seven-man roster.
Players Mentioned
/ Tennis (M)
/ Tennis (M)
/ Tennis (M)
/ Tennis (M)
/ Tennis (M)
/ Tennis (M)
/ Tennis (M)
/ Tennis (M)
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