Texas Tech University Athletics
Men's Tennis Lands Ilgiz Valiev to NLI
April 14, 2017 | Men's Tennis
Valiev enters the Texas Tech program as a freshman for the 2017-18 season.
LUBBOCK, TEXAS – Texas Tech men's tennis coach Brett Masi announced the addition of Ilgiz Valiev who signed a National Letter of Intent (NLI) and Athletic Scholarship Agreement (ASA) Friday as part of the spring signing period.
Valiev, a native of Ufa, Russia, will join the Red Raiders for his freshman season next fall. He is 6-foot and plays left-handed. Valiev chose Texas Tech over Texas A&M and Arizona State.
"We're very excited to land a player of Ilgiz's caliber," Texas Tech head coach Brett Masi said. "Being Top 70 in the world is a great accomplishment. I know he wants to continue to improve on that ranking and play the grand slams this summer. Ilgiz's experience will provide us some much-needed depth the next few seasons. I can't wait for him to get him to campus next fall."
Valiev is currently ranked in the Top 70 by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). He was the singles champion at the G3 ITF Junior Tournament in Kazakhstan during November 2016. The Russian has been a finalist in many additional ITF Tournaments. Valiev is a Russian National Team member and winner of a Russian Team Championship.
"Ilgiz brings great success on the ITF Junior Circuit to Texas Tech as a Top 100 junior in the world," Texas Tech assistant coach Jordan Szabo said. "Coach Masi and I had a great connection with Ilgiz right away and believe he will have an immediate impact for our program."
Texas Tech caps a three-match road swing at No. 8 Texas on Saturday. First serve is scheduled for 3 p.m. CT from the Caswell Tennis Center in Austin. Live match updates will be available at @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.
The Red Raiders have one home match remaining versus No. 3 Baylor on Saturday, April 22. First serve is on-tap for 6 p.m. CT from the McLeod Tennis Center with free admission and free pizza while supplies last. Texas Tech will honors is seniors Jolan Cailleau and Carlos DiLaura prematch.
Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the Texas Tech men's tennis program. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.facebook.com/Techmenstennis and @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.
Valiev, a native of Ufa, Russia, will join the Red Raiders for his freshman season next fall. He is 6-foot and plays left-handed. Valiev chose Texas Tech over Texas A&M and Arizona State.
"We're very excited to land a player of Ilgiz's caliber," Texas Tech head coach Brett Masi said. "Being Top 70 in the world is a great accomplishment. I know he wants to continue to improve on that ranking and play the grand slams this summer. Ilgiz's experience will provide us some much-needed depth the next few seasons. I can't wait for him to get him to campus next fall."
Valiev is currently ranked in the Top 70 by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). He was the singles champion at the G3 ITF Junior Tournament in Kazakhstan during November 2016. The Russian has been a finalist in many additional ITF Tournaments. Valiev is a Russian National Team member and winner of a Russian Team Championship.
"Ilgiz brings great success on the ITF Junior Circuit to Texas Tech as a Top 100 junior in the world," Texas Tech assistant coach Jordan Szabo said. "Coach Masi and I had a great connection with Ilgiz right away and believe he will have an immediate impact for our program."
Texas Tech caps a three-match road swing at No. 8 Texas on Saturday. First serve is scheduled for 3 p.m. CT from the Caswell Tennis Center in Austin. Live match updates will be available at @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.
The Red Raiders have one home match remaining versus No. 3 Baylor on Saturday, April 22. First serve is on-tap for 6 p.m. CT from the McLeod Tennis Center with free admission and free pizza while supplies last. Texas Tech will honors is seniors Jolan Cailleau and Carlos DiLaura prematch.
Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the Texas Tech men's tennis program. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.facebook.com/Techmenstennis and @TexasTechTennis on Twitter.
Players Mentioned
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