College Tennis News - Cal Plays Virginia in NCAA Round of 16 Rematch

Bears Play the Cavaliers at 10 a.m. PT on Thursday in Urbana, Ill.

BERKELEY - For the second consecutive year, California will play Virginia in the round of 16 at the NCAA Championships - this time at 10 a.m. PT/noon CT on Thursday, May 16, at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex in Urbana, Ill. The University of Illinois is the host of the NCAA Men's and Women's Tennis Championships, both of which begin this week at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex. The tournaments end with the finals on May 21.

This marks just the second dual match between Cal and Virginia, which is seeded No. 2 in the tournament.

The 18th-ranked Golden Bears have a 16-9 record after beating Florida State, 4-1, and Denver, 4-1, respectively, in the NCAA's first and second rounds in Gainesville, Fla. Third-ranked Virginia has a 26-0 record after beating Minnesota, 4-0, in the second round and Fairleigh Dickinson, 4-0, in the first round in Charlottesville, Va.

This is Cal's third straight appearance in the round of 16. Last year, the Bears' season ended with a 4-0 loss to the Cavaliers in the round of 16. This is UVa's 10th straight visit to the round of 16. In each of the last two years, the Cavs lost to USC in the NCAA team final.

NCAA Championships in Urbana, Ill.

Fans can follow the NCAA Championships via live stats and via Twitter - @CalMens Tennis and @NCAATennis2013.

Ticket information is located on this site: http://ev11.evenue.net/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/SEGetEventList?groupCode=TEN&linkID=illinois&shopperContext=&caller=&appCode=

For more information about the NCAA Championships at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex, please visit the tournament's official website.

Scouting the Bears

• Cal has won two straight matches heading into the dual with the Cavs

• The Bears' feature the following ranked singles players: No. 38 junior Ben McLachlan, No. 60 junior Campbell Johnson and No. 86 senior co-captain Christoffer Konigsfeldt

• McLachlan and Johnson will compete in the NCAA singles championship from May 22-27 in Urbana

• The ITA ranks three of Cal's doubles teams: No. 26 Johnson/Konigsfeldt, No. 58 McLachlan/McLachlan and No. 65 Ben McLachlan/freshman Mad Engsted

• The pair of Johnson and Konigsfeldt will play in the NCAA doubles tournament later this month

• Senior co-captain Riki McLachlan - who was sidelined by injury from a Feb. 8 match at USC through the Pac-12 Championships - played at No.6 singles for the Bears in the NCAA first and second rounds

• Konigsfeldt and Riki McLachlan - the older brother of teammate Ben McLachlan - are Cal's co-captains

• Konigsfeldt claimed the Pac-12 Player of the Week award on April 9 for his play in wins over Oregon and Washington; McLachlan (on March 19) and Bayane (March 12) also earned the conference accolade, giving Cal three on the season

• Cal is one of 14 schools with both its men's and women's tennis teams ranked in the May 2 ITA poll; the Cal women are ranked eighth

• Peter Wright (class of 1991) is in his 20th season as head coach at his alma mater

Scouting the Cavaliers

• The ITA ranks six Cavs in singles: No. 2 Alex Domijan (a 6-7 junior), No. 3 senior Jarmere Jenkins, No. 28 freshman Mac Styslinger, No. 39 sophomore Mitchell Frank, No. 69 freshman Ryan Shane and No. 70 freshman Harris Richmond

• Four Cavaliers will play in the NCAA singles tournament: No. 2 seed Domijan, No. 3 seed Jenkins, Frank and Styslinger

• Virginia has four ranked doubles teams: No. 4 Jenkins/Styslinger, No. 25 Domijan/Frank, No. 25 Richmond/Domijan, No. 89 Justin Shane/Julien Urigen

• Jenkins and Styslinger are the No. 4 seed in the NCAA doubles tournament, which also includes UVa's Domijan and Frank

• Brian Boland is in his 12th year as head coach of Virginia

Last Time: Bears Beat Denver in the Second Round

Cal each of its first two NCAA tournament opponents - Florida State in the first round and Denver in the second - 4-1, in dual matches held at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Fla.

After splitting the second and third doubles matches against Denver, the doubles point came down to the first doubles match. Denver's Enej Bonin and Jens Vorkefeld upset Cal's Campbell Johnson and Christoffer Konigsfeldt, the 26th ranked doubles team in the nation, 8-6 to take the doubles point.

As singles play was underway, a storm passed through the Gainesville, Fla. area, forcing the remainder of the match to be played in the Charles R. and Nancy V. Perry Indoor Facility. First, second, and third singles were the first three singles matches to begin inside the indoor facility.

Cal's Konigsfeldt, the 86th ranked singles player in the country, knotted the overall score at one apiece after recording a 6-3, 6-3, win against Denver's Vorkefeld at court-two singles. Only a few minutes later, Cal took the lead when Johnson, the nation's 60th-ranked singles player, defeated Max Krammer, 6-3, 6-2, on court three.

Gregory Bayane extended Cal's advantage to 3-1 after a 6-2, 6-4 victory on court four. Freshman Mads Engsted clinched the match for the Golden Bears minutes later, recording a 6-4, 6-1, win on court five.

Last Year at the NCAA Championships

The 14th-seeded California men's tennis team (14-12) fell, 4-0, to third-seeded and No. 2-ranked Virginia (27-1) in the round of 16 of the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Championships on the Henry Field Courts of the Dan Magill Tennis Complex on May 18 in Athens, Ga. The Golden Bears had advanced to the round of 16 for the sixth time under head coach Peter Wright and were facing 2011 NCAA runner-up Virginia for the first time in program history.

Three Golden Bears competed in the NCAA singles and doubles championships - Nick Andrews and Ben McLachlan in singles and Andrews paired with Christoffer Konigsfeldt in doubles. Both McLachlan and Andrews fell in the singles round of 64, with McLachlan dropping a 6-1, 6-3, result to Mississippi State's Artem Ilyushin and Andrews losing to Mississippi State's George Coupland, 4-6, 7-6(7), 6-4. Konigsfeldt/Andrews fell to Texas Tech's Raony Carvalho and Gonzalo Escobar, 6-1, 6-3, in the doubles round of 16.

Next Time

The Bears compete in the NCAA singles and doubles tournaments from May 22-27 in Urbana, Ill.