Upcoming Event: Men's Tennis versus North Florida on January 15, 2026 at 4 p.m.
4 p.m.
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Men's Tennis
vs. North Florida
Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Photo by: ©JC Ridley/Florida Atlantic
Fernandez Horta Advances to ITA Semifinals
10/25/2021 9:10:00 PM | Men's Tennis
BOCA RATON, Fla. – Alvaro Fernandez Horta celebrated his 21st birthday last weekend, but it wasn't the only thing he had to celebrate over the weekend. The junior from Zaragoza, Spain also advanced to the semifinal round of the ITA Southeast Regional Tournament, hosted by the University of Florida.
Fernandez Horta's win is the best ITA fall finish for an Owl since current FAU head coach Ricardo Gonzalez joined the program in 2012 as an assistant.
The Owls returned their entire roster from the 2020-21 season and will use this tournament in preparation for the 2021-22 season.
"I am extremely pleased with the way we played during the ITA regional. Alvaro really picked it up a notch this weekend. Not only was his level of play high, but most importantly, he really showed improvement with his mental and physical strength. This is something that we really put emphasis on, and it is nice to see progress.
"This tournament will give Alvaro and the rest of the team a little extra motivation to keep building from this. Our boys need to continue to raise the bar and keep pushing themselves to a higher standard. It's a long journey ahead of us and I am excited to get back to work. There are still many, many things that we need to continue to improve."
Gainesville, Fla.
Qualifying Singles (First Round)
Nicolas Jadoun (FAU) def. Alexandros Roumpis (GSO), 6-4, 6-3
Hunter Robbins (FAU) def. Edward Tymes (GAST), 6-7 (1), 6-3, 10-7
Fabian Penzkofer (Stetson) def. Gabriel Diaz (FAU), 6-2, 6-2
John Bernard (FSU) def. Finn Stodder (FAU), 6-3, 6-1
Qualifying Singles Consolation (One Round)
Sebastian Arcila (FSU) def. Gabriel Diaz (FAU), 6-4, 6-2
Finn Stodder (FAU) def. Quinn Snyder (UCF), 6-4, 7-6 (4)
Main Draw Singles (round of 64)
Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. No. 70 Lleyton Cronje (UCF), 7-5, 2-6, 5-3 (retired)
Kevin Huempfner (FAU) def. Roberts Grinvalds (GAST), 3-6, 7-5, 6-1
No. 47 Chase Ferguson (USF) def. Gerard Escandell (FAU), 6-0, 6-3
Carles Sarrio (FAU) def. Nilo Duarte (UNF), 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
Main Draw Singles (round of 32)
Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Matthew Terry (KSU), 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
No. 122 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Kevin Huempfner (FAU), 7-6 (7), 4-6, 6-3
No. 15 Philip Henning (UGA) def. Carles Sarrio (FAU), 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
Main Draw Singles (round of 16)
Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Bogdan Pavel (UCF), 7-6 (6), 6-3
Main Draw Singles (quarterfinals)
Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Richard Thongoana (FSU), 6-1, 6-4
Main Draw Singles (semifinals)
Trey Hilderbrand (UCF) def. Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU), 6-2, 7-6 (4)
Main Draw Singles Consolation (round 32)
Gerard Escandell (FAU) def. Patrick Kotan (UNF), Walkover (injury)
Qualifying Doubles (Second Round, winners qualify for main draw)
Finn Stodder/Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Fabian Penzkofer/Tim Gennes (Stetson), 8-6
Raul Garcia/Sergio Ingles Garre (KSU) def. Filip Krolo/Kevin Huempfner (FAU), 8-7 (9)
Main Draw Doubles (round of 32)
Lleyton Cronje/Trey Hilderbrand (UCF) def. Carles Sarrio/Hunter Robbins (FAU), 8-6
Finn Stodder/Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Raul Garcia/Sergio Ingles Garre (KSU), 8-3
Main Draw Doubles (round of 16)
No. 43 Andrei Duarte/Roberts Grinvalds (GAST) def. Finn Stodder/Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU), 8-3
To follow the team socially, visit @faumtennis on both Twitter and Instagram. For the team's complete schedule, click HERE.
Fernandez Horta's win is the best ITA fall finish for an Owl since current FAU head coach Ricardo Gonzalez joined the program in 2012 as an assistant.
The Owls returned their entire roster from the 2020-21 season and will use this tournament in preparation for the 2021-22 season.
Head Coach
Head Coach Ricardo Gonzalez"I am extremely pleased with the way we played during the ITA regional. Alvaro really picked it up a notch this weekend. Not only was his level of play high, but most importantly, he really showed improvement with his mental and physical strength. This is something that we really put emphasis on, and it is nice to see progress.
"This tournament will give Alvaro and the rest of the team a little extra motivation to keep building from this. Our boys need to continue to raise the bar and keep pushing themselves to a higher standard. It's a long journey ahead of us and I am excited to get back to work. There are still many, many things that we need to continue to improve."
Tourney Results
Oct 21-25, 2021Gainesville, Fla.
Qualifying Singles (First Round)
Nicolas Jadoun (FAU) def. Alexandros Roumpis (GSO), 6-4, 6-3
Hunter Robbins (FAU) def. Edward Tymes (GAST), 6-7 (1), 6-3, 10-7
Fabian Penzkofer (Stetson) def. Gabriel Diaz (FAU), 6-2, 6-2
John Bernard (FSU) def. Finn Stodder (FAU), 6-3, 6-1
Qualifying Singles Consolation (One Round)
Sebastian Arcila (FSU) def. Gabriel Diaz (FAU), 6-4, 6-2
Finn Stodder (FAU) def. Quinn Snyder (UCF), 6-4, 7-6 (4)
Main Draw Singles (round of 64)
Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. No. 70 Lleyton Cronje (UCF), 7-5, 2-6, 5-3 (retired)
Kevin Huempfner (FAU) def. Roberts Grinvalds (GAST), 3-6, 7-5, 6-1
No. 47 Chase Ferguson (USF) def. Gerard Escandell (FAU), 6-0, 6-3
Carles Sarrio (FAU) def. Nilo Duarte (UNF), 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
Main Draw Singles (round of 32)
Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Matthew Terry (KSU), 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
No. 122 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Kevin Huempfner (FAU), 7-6 (7), 4-6, 6-3
No. 15 Philip Henning (UGA) def. Carles Sarrio (FAU), 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
Main Draw Singles (round of 16)
Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Bogdan Pavel (UCF), 7-6 (6), 6-3
Main Draw Singles (quarterfinals)
Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Richard Thongoana (FSU), 6-1, 6-4
Main Draw Singles (semifinals)
Trey Hilderbrand (UCF) def. Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU), 6-2, 7-6 (4)
Main Draw Singles Consolation (round 32)
Gerard Escandell (FAU) def. Patrick Kotan (UNF), Walkover (injury)
Qualifying Doubles (Second Round, winners qualify for main draw)
Finn Stodder/Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Fabian Penzkofer/Tim Gennes (Stetson), 8-6
Raul Garcia/Sergio Ingles Garre (KSU) def. Filip Krolo/Kevin Huempfner (FAU), 8-7 (9)
Main Draw Doubles (round of 32)
Lleyton Cronje/Trey Hilderbrand (UCF) def. Carles Sarrio/Hunter Robbins (FAU), 8-6
Finn Stodder/Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU) def. Raul Garcia/Sergio Ingles Garre (KSU), 8-3
Main Draw Doubles (round of 16)
No. 43 Andrei Duarte/Roberts Grinvalds (GAST) def. Finn Stodder/Alvaro Fernandez Horta (FAU), 8-3
To follow the team socially, visit @faumtennis on both Twitter and Instagram. For the team's complete schedule, click HERE.
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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