Completed Event: Men's Tennis versus Alabama on March 22, 2026 , Win , 4, to, 0
Final
Men's Tennis
4
vs Alabama
0
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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Wednesday, April 1
Norman, Okla.
5:00 PM
University of Oklahoma
4
vs
1
Tulsa
Suffocating Singles Play Delivers 20th Win
April 01, 2015 | Men's Tennis
No. 20 Tulsa
1
4
No. 1 Oklahoma
All in all, to come out in singles and put those kinds of scores up in singles against a team that is capable of big upsets, and is a top-20 team is exactly what you want to see.
Head Coach John Roddick
NORMAN – The top-ranked Oklahoma men's tennis team picked up its 20th win of the season Wednesday night, beating No. 20 Tulsa 4-1 on a windy evening at the Headington Family Tennis Center.
Playing their third match against a top-20 opponent in six days, the Sooners (20-1, 2-0) dropped the doubles point for the ninth time this season. Tulsa won at one and two doubles while freshman Spencer Papa and sophomore Florin Bragusi gave OU its only win in a 6-0 sweep of Mitchell Pritchard and Daniel Santos.
“We talked and we feel that we can play a better doubles point than that,” head coach John Roddick said. “Tulsa played well. The mistakes we made we won't make in the future.”
The Sooners trailed 1-0 after doubles, but for the eighth time this season, it would not matter. OU's daunting singles lineup was suffocating. Oklahoma won all six first sets and took all four of its wins in straight sets. Play was stopped at 4-1, but the Sooners were in position to win in straight sets on the remaining two courts.
“All in all, to come out in singles and put those kinds of scores up in singles against a team that is capable of big upsets, and is a top-20 team is exactly what you want to see,” Roddick said.
Playing at No. 1 singles for the fourth time this season, second-ranked Axel Alvarez was the first off for Oklahoma. The junior remained undefeated in dual play this year, winning his 17th match and his 16th straight-sets match. Alvarez gave up just one game in taking down Tulsa's highest ranked player No. 33 Or Ram-Harel 6-1, 6-0.
Freshman Spencer Papa put OU up for good, winning 6-1, 6-2 over Dylan McCloskey at No. 5 singles to make it 2-1 Oklahoma. The win is Papa's fourth in a row and fourth consecutive in straight-sets. The Edmond, Okla. native is undefeated at the number five spot.
No. 23 Dane Webb put Oklahoma up 3-1 with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Matthew Kirby at No. 3 singles. Webb trailed 3-0 in the first set, but rallied to win seven straight games to take the first set, and won 12 of the last 14 games to take the match.
I got down 3-0 today, but I didn't think I was playing badly. After that I won seven in a row and took the second set so I felt pretty good about it.
Senior Dane Webb
“Dane got down 3-0, but didn't let if faze him much,” Roddick said. “We had a game plan that started clicking and he just stuck with it. He did a really good job mentally. That is not easy to do when you don't necessarily feel that you are playing your best tennis and then you have a bad start. To turn it around was a great effort.”
“I have a good record, but I had some trouble last weekend,” Webb said. “Everyone else played well so we still won pretty quick which was nice. I got down 3-0 today, but I didn't think I was playing badly. It was just windy and he [Kirby] hit a few awkward winners. After that I won seven in a row and took the second set so I felt pretty good about it.”
The clinching point came on court four, where No. 65 Alex Ghilea topped Juan Gonzalez in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2. The win moves Ghilea to 13-2 in dual play, tied for second in wins with Webb at 13.
“It is a great feeling,” Ghilea said. “Just to win a match is important and to clinch is even better. I know Florin (Bragusi) and Andrew (Harris) were up in their second sets so we had good chances on every court.”
Oklahoma's remains unbeaten at home this season at 11-0, and moves to 7-1 in outdoor matches. The Sooners now boast 15 wins over teams currently ranked in the ITA top-25 and six wins over teams in the top-10.
Roddick's crew will get some much deserved time off, as the Sooners are not back in action until Friday, April 10 at 6 p.m. when they travel to No. 2 Baylor. The Sooners have already beaten the Bears twice this season. OU won 4-2 in the semifinals of the ITA National Indoor Championships en route to winning the title, and 4-1 in the finals of the Oracle Classic in California.
“We are definitely still going to work hard, but I am ready for a weekend off mentally,” Webb said. “My body feels good, but it is stressful playing these three times a week, particularly with the schedule that we have. I am ready for a weekend to relax.”
For more information on Oklahoma Men's Tennis, follow the team on Twitter at @OU_MTennis.
RESULTS
DOUBLES
Ram-Harel/Espejo def. #6 Webb/Alvarez 6-3
Kirby/McCLoskey def. Harris/Ghilea 6-4
Papa/Bragusi def. Pritchard/Santos 6-0
Order of finish: 3, 2, 1
SINGLES
#2 Axel Alvarez def. #33 Or Ram-Harel 6-1, 6-0
#13 Andrew Harris vs. #74 Alejandro Espejo 6-4, 3-3 DNF
#23 Dane Webb def. Matthew Kirby 6-3, 6-2
#65 Alex Ghilea def. Juan Gonzalez 6-2, 6-2
Spencer Papa def. Dylan McCloskey 6-1, 6-2
Florin Bragusi vs. Carlos Bautista 7-5(5), 3-0 DNF
Order of finish: 1, 5, 3, 4
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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