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Aleks KovacevicIllinois Fighting Illini Men's Tennis vs Minnesota 04/04/2021
Della Perrone / Illinois Athletics

Men's Tennis

Kovacevic Set to Play in NCAA Quarterfinals

News

Men's Tennis

Kovacevic Set to Play in NCAA Quarterfinals

News

ORLANDO, Fla. – Aleks Kovacevic will play in the quarterfinals at the NCAA Singles Championships tomorrow in Orlando. Kovacevic lost the first set before battling back to defeat Alexis Galarneau from NC State 4-6,6-4,6-0.

"Alexis was outstanding today, said head coach Brad Dancer. "I wasn't sure how Kova was going to get through him as he had answers for everything. Kova got a small crack in the window late in the second set and was able to ride the momentum through. It was a gritty effort by Kova. We know we have another tough opponent tomorrow."

"I really had to dig deep to get through the match today," said Kovacevic. "Alexis is a good friend and great player and I knew it was going to be a battle. I was honestly hoping we could meet later in the tournament because I think he's one of the best players in the draw and the level was really high today. I'm looking forward to another challenge tomorrow."

Siphosothando Montsi fell to Sam Riffice from Florida in two sets during the round of 16 this afternoon. Montsi finished the year 16-3 in dual matches and 18-4 overall.

"Really tough for Siphos today," said Dancer. "I give a ton of credit to Sam. In the second set he took the racket out of our hands. Overall it was a fantastic year for Siphos. He showed a lot of growth. I'm happy for him to get some rounds in this tournament and now we look to summer."

UP NEXT

Kovacevic will play against No. 2 seeded Daniel Rodrigues from South Carolina in the quarterfinals.

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Players Mentioned

Aleks Kovacevic

Aleks Kovacevic

6' 0"
Senior
Siphosothando Montsi

Siphosothando Montsi

5' 9"
Redshirt Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Aleks Kovacevic

Aleks Kovacevic

6' 0"
Senior
Siphosothando Montsi

Siphosothando Montsi

5' 9"
Redshirt Sophomore