Zheng, Hashimoto punch tickets for the NCAA Men's Individual Tennis Championships

TULSA, Okay. Columbia men's tennis players Michael Zheng And Hugo Hashimoto will head to Waco, Texas in November to compete in the NCAA Individual Championships after an incredible performance at the ITA All-American Championships. Zheng secured a spot in the NCAA Singles Championships, and the duo of Hashimoto and Zheng earned a spot in the NCAA Doubles Championships.

One of the highlights of Tulsa was the elite doubles display from No. 21 Hashimoto and Zheng. The duo kicked off the main draw on Wednesday with a three-set victory over No. 41 Youcef Rihane and Alex Bulte (Florida State) 6-4, 2-6, [10-4]. The win set up a matchup against No. 1 Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez (Mississippi State) on Thursday. Hashimoto and Zheng dropped the first set before pulling away to win a second set tiebreak and the third set tiebreak to post a 4-6, 7-6(6), [10-8] win over the nation's No. 1 doubles team.

After a huge victory, Hashimoto and Zheng dominated in straight sets on Friday, defeating LSU's No. 20 Julien Penzlin and Aleksi Lofman 7-5, 6-1. Hashimoto and Zheng advanced to the semifinals with the victory and officially secured a spot in the NCAA Doubles Championships later this fall.

The duo of Hashimoto and Zheng concluded their run through doubles on Saturday with a 7-5, 7-5 loss to Baylor's Marko Miladinovic and Oskar Brostrom Poulsen in the semifinals.

Zheng was busy this week as he also competed in the main singles draw. Ranked No. 2 in the country in singles, Zheng posted three straight wins to advance to the quarterfinals and secure a spot at the NCAA Singles Championships in November.

Zheng's run began Wednesday with a 7-5, 6-2 victory over No. 61 Devin Badenhorst (Baylor). Zheng followed that up with a 7-5, 6-3 victory against Wake Forest's No. 26 Dhakshineswar Suresh on Thursday. Zheng started the day Friday with a dominant 6-1, 6-2 victory over No. 17 JC Roddick (Texas A&M) to punch his ticket to Waco. Zheng played his quarterfinal later that afternoon when he fell in three sets to No. 37 Pedro Vives (TCU), 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.

Hashimoto and Nicolaas Kotzen took part in the singles qualifying match earlier this week. No. 98 Hashimoto opened singles action Monday with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory over No. 52 Iiro Vasa (San Diego). Hashimoto fell in three sets to Corey Craig (Florida State) in the next round. No. No. 74 Kotzen lost to No. 83 Charlelie Cosnet (Kentucky) in his first qualifying match. Kotzen then fell in a consolation match to Sean Daryabeigi (South Carolina).

The NCAA singles and doubles championships start on Tuesday, November 19 and run through Sunday, November 24 in Waco, Texas.

FULL RESULTS
Qualifying singles

#98 Hugo Hashimoto (Columbia) final #52 Iiro Vasa (San Diego) 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
Corey Craig (Florida State) def. #98 Hugo Hashimoto (Columbia) 2-6, 6-2, 6-0
#83 Charlelie Cosnet (Kentucky) def. #74 Nicolaas Kotzen (Columbia) 6-4, 6-3
Sean Daryabeigi (South Carolina) def. #74 Nicolaas Kotzen (Columbia) 1-6, 6-3, 6-2

Main draw singles

#2 Michael Zheng (Columbia) final #61 Devin Badenhorst (Baylor) 7-5, 6-2
#2 Michael Zheng (Columbia) #26 Dhakshineswar Suresh (Wake Forest) 7-5, 6-3
#2 Michael Zheng (Columbia) final #17 JC Roddick (Texas A&M) 6-1, 6-2
#37 Pedro Vives (TCU) def. No. 2 Michael Zheng (Columbia) 6-4, 3-6, 6-4

Main draw doubles

#21 Hugo Hashimoto/Michael Zheng (COL) final #41 Youcef Rihane/Alex Bulte (FSU) 6-4, 2-6, [10-4]

#21 Hugo Hashimoto/Michael Zheng (COL) final #1 Petar Jovanovic/Benito Sanchez (MSU) 4-6, 7-6(6), [10-8]

#21 Hugo Hashimoto/Michael Zheng (COL) final #20 Julien Penzlin/Alexi Lofman (LSU) 7-5, 6-1
Marko Miladinovic/Oskar Brostrom Poulsen (Baylor) def. #21 Hugo Hashimoto/Michael Zheng (COL) 7-5, 7-5

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