Checking into Champaign: NCAA Championships Reaches Elite Eight

Checking into Champaign: NCAA Championships Reaches Elite Eight

4 min read

The Elite Eight is set for the 2022 Division I NCAA Championship with the men’s matches kicking things off in Urbana-Champaign, Illinois on Thursday followed by the women playing on Friday.

All Top 8-seeded women’s and men’s teams advanced to the Elite Eight and have made their way to the University of Illinois to compete at the Khan Outdoor Tennis Complex. TennisONE is the official streaming app of the NCAA tournament with live streams, brackets, results, and more.

Previewing the Men's Quarterfinals

On a hot day in Fort Worth, Texas, top-seeded TCU (80.69 UTR Power 6) swept past NC State 4-0 for its fifth Elite Eight appearance in seven years. A team's UTR Power 6 is a rating calculated by adding all of the individual UTR Ratings of the top six singles players. TCU junior Luc Fomba clinched the match at the No. 1 spot to improve his season record to 16-4. He and Jake Fearnley are the No. 1-ranked doubles team in the country.

TCU will face No. 8 seed Kentucky (80.70) for a place in the Final Four when they take to the courts on Thursday at 4 p.m. EST. Kentucky (24-7) defeated No. 9-seeded Wake Forest to earn its first berth to the Elite 8 since 2011. The Wildcats 4-2 win was one of the tighter of the Sweet 16, made dramatic by the loss of the doubles point and weather delays.

No. 3 seed Baylor (80.85) will take on No. 6 seed Tennessee (81.15) in the other quarterfinal taking place on Thursday at 4 p.m. EST. Baylor (29-3) was challenged by No. 18-seeded Stanford, needing to come back from a 3-1 deficit. Tennessee had an easier time of it, dismissing No. 28 Florida State 4-0. Vols leader Adam Wolton, a graduate student at the No. 1 position in singles and doubles, joined the 100/100 win club for reaching 100 career wins in singles and doubles. Baylor vs. Tennessee will be a rematch of a close Final Four showdown last year, which Baylor won 4-2.

At 8 p.m. on Thursday, No. 2-seeded Florida (82.16) will play No. 7 Virginia (80.85), and No. 4 Ohio State (82.40) will take on No. 5 Michigan (80.65). Florida and Virginia both advanced with 4-0 wins in the Sweet 16, while Ohio State and Michigan needed 4-2 wins to get past USC and Texas, respectively.

Previewing the Women's Quarterfinals

The No. 1-seeded North Carolina (64.55) advanced to the Elite Eight with a 4-0 victory over No. 16 Florida, and takes on No. 8 Pepperdine (65.15) on Friday. UNC (21-7) has yet to lose a point in three matches of NCAA action. The clash with the Waves will be a rematch of last year’s semifinals, which the Tar Heels lost 4-3.

Texas (64.74), the defending champion and No. 4 seed, dropped the doubles point against Auburn in the Sweet 16 but recovered for a 4-1 win. Playing at No. 1 singles, Universal Tennis ambassador Peyton Stearns improved her 2022 record to 25-1. Texas will play No. 5 Virginia (63.99) after the Cavaliers picked up a 4-1 victory against No. 12 Oklahoma State. Sophomore Hibah Shaikh, playing at No. 5, has clinched all three of Virginia’s NCAA matches.

No. 7 Texas A&M (63.66) will try to upset No. 2 Oklahoma (64.17) on Friday. Texas A&M (31-1) beat Vanderbilt 4-0 in the Sweet 16 with Universal Tennis ambassador Carson Branstine clinching the team’s ticket to Champaign with a victory at No. 1.

 

 

The remaining quarterfinal matchup will see No. 3 Duke (63.36) take on No. 6 NC State (63.53). The Blue Devils bring an 11-match winning streak into this weekend and came back from 1-3 to beat the Wolfpack 4-3 during the regular season.

The Final Four will take place on Saturday while the champions will be decided on Sunday.

Download TennisONE for the full live-streaming schedule, brackets, results, and more through the finals of the team NCAA Championships on May 22 and the individual and doubles tournaments on May 28.

 

 

 

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