Kapshuk Fights His Way into ITA Main Draw

Tuesday, October 3

Tulsa, Okla.

All Day

Texas Tech Athletics

Saint Francis/ITA All-American Qualifying

Kapshuk Fights His Way into ITA Main Draw

October 03, 2017 | Men's Tennis

Artem Kapshuk grinded out two straight-set wins on the final day of qualifying at the Saint Francis ITA All-American Championships.

Tulsa, Okla. – Artem Kapshuk of the Texas Tech men's tennis team secured his spot in the main draw of the Saint Francis ITA All-American Championships with a pair of hard-fought qualifying wins Tuesday at the Case Tennis Center on the University of Tulsa campus.

Kapshuk punched his ticket into Thursday's 64-player main draw with a 6-4, 7-6 (3) victory over Jake Van Emburgh of Oklahoma. He is the fifth Red Raider to play in the main draw since 2005 where he joins the illustrious company of Bojan Szumanski (2005) along with former ITA All-Americans Raony Carvalho (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010), Gonzalo Escobar (2010, 2011) and Felipe Soares (2014, 2015).

"I'm very proud of Artem for fighting really hard today and executing the game plans," Texas Tech head coach Brett Masi said. "It was a long day of sitting around and waiting, but I thought Artem kept a good mindset and was able to perform well because of it. It's always a huge accomplishment to qualify and play in the main draw at the ITAs. He'll get a much deserved day off tomorrow."

Kapshuk started the day with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Indiana's Raheel Manji. He earned a break in the eighth game at 30-40 to surge ahead 5-3 in the opening set. The Ukraine native followed with a hold and closed out the frame with a forehand winner up the line at 40-15.

Kapshuk wiped away an early 3-0 hole in set two. All square at 4-4, Kapshuk once again turned to his forehand up the line. He registered a break at 30-40 and finished off a long rally on match point to secure the straight-set win.

Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the men's tennis program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/TechMensTennis and @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.

2017 Saint Francis ITA All-American Championships Results – Tuesday, October 3
Singles – Qualifying – Round 2
Artem Kapshuk (Texas Tech) defeats Raheel Manji (Indiana): 6-3, 6-4
Murkel Dellien (Wichita State) defeats Alex Sendegeya (Texas Tech): 7-6 (8), 6-4

Singles – Qualifying – Round 3
Artem Kapshuk (Texas Tech) defeats Jake Van Emburgh (Oklahoma): 6-4, 7-6 (3)

Singles – Qualifying – Consolation
Scott Jones (Tennessee) defeats No. 98 Connor Curry (Texas Tech): 6-3, 6-1