Florida State University Athletics
Thursday, November 21
Waco, Texas
Florida State
vs
Round of 16
Rihane and Bulte Earn All-American Status; Craig Advances To Singles Quarterfinals
11/21/2024 8:21:00 PM | Men's Tennis
WACO, Texas – Youcef Rihane and Alex Bulte claimed their first career ITA All-American honors by reaching the quarterfinals while Corey Craig knocked off the No. 11 player in the nation at the NCAA Men's Tennis Individual Championships. The Seminoles have had five All-Americans this calendar year, nearly half of the entire total in program history.
Craig continued his singles championship run with a top-15 matchup against Princeton's Paul Inchauspe. The two players traded games back-and-forth in the first set before Inchauspe pulled away in the set tiebreaker. Craig had overcome five different set deficits and had dropped just one second set the entire fall campaign. Craig stormed out to an early 4-1 lead in the next frame and leveled the match at one set apiece with a 6-2 win.
Craig came into the match with an unbeaten record in third sets and continued to wear down his opponent. He won six consecutive games to seal his spot in the quarterfinals of the singles championship. Craig secured his highest ranked victory of his career and notched his sixth consecutive three set victory.
Rihane and Bulte came into the match off four consecutive doubles victories including two top-50 victories. The Seminole pairing had worked through the match and found themselves level at 3-3 before winning three straight games to close out the first set. Liberty's pairing of Joaquim Almeida and Siwanat Auytayakul responded accordingly with a 4-0 second set lead looking to equalize the match.
The Seminole pairing fought back with three games of their own while dropping just two points in that stretch. Liberty blanked the Seminoles in the following game to put themselves within touching distance. Rihane and Bulte responded with an otherworldly performance, winning four consecutive games to claim the second set, advance to the quarterfinals, and earn their spot in Seminole history. Rihane and Bulte became the 11th and 12th All-Americans in program history.
Florida State earned two All-American honors last season with Antoine Cornut-Chauvinc and Joshua Dous-Karpenschif. Cornut-Chauvinc earned five total All-American honors including four singles honors. Corey Craig claimed an All-American honor on Wednesday before seniors Rihane and Bulte claimed the fourth and fifth honors of the calendar year.
The winners advance to the quarterfinal round on Friday and face entries from conference foes Wake Forest. Craig is set to face No. 26 Dhakshineswar Suresh while Rihane and Bulte will battle No. 72 Luciano Tacchi and Luca Pow.
Live video and stats will be available at Seminoles.com.
NCAA - Men's Singles Main Draw - Round of 16
Corey Craig (FSU) def. #11 Paul Inchauspe (PRIN) 6-7 (2), 6-2, 6-1
NCAA - Men's Doubles Main Draw - Round of 16
#41 Youcef Rihane/Alex Bulte (FSU) def. Joaquim Almeida/Siwanat Auytayakul (LIB) 6-3, 6-1
NCAA - Men's Singles Main Draw - Quarterfinals
Corey Craig (FSU) vs. #26 Dhakshineswar Suresh (WAKE) - 11 a.m. ET
NCAA - Men's Doubles Main Draw - Quarterfinals
#41 Youcef Rihane/Alex Bulte (FSU) vs. #72 Luciano Tacchi/Luca Pow (WAKE) - 3 p.m. ET
For more information on the Florida State men's tennis program, check Seminoles.com and follow us on social media at Florida State Men's Tennis (FB) and FSUMTennis (IG and X).
Craig continued his singles championship run with a top-15 matchup against Princeton's Paul Inchauspe. The two players traded games back-and-forth in the first set before Inchauspe pulled away in the set tiebreaker. Craig had overcome five different set deficits and had dropped just one second set the entire fall campaign. Craig stormed out to an early 4-1 lead in the next frame and leveled the match at one set apiece with a 6-2 win.
Craig came into the match with an unbeaten record in third sets and continued to wear down his opponent. He won six consecutive games to seal his spot in the quarterfinals of the singles championship. Craig secured his highest ranked victory of his career and notched his sixth consecutive three set victory.
Rihane and Bulte came into the match off four consecutive doubles victories including two top-50 victories. The Seminole pairing had worked through the match and found themselves level at 3-3 before winning three straight games to close out the first set. Liberty's pairing of Joaquim Almeida and Siwanat Auytayakul responded accordingly with a 4-0 second set lead looking to equalize the match.
The Seminole pairing fought back with three games of their own while dropping just two points in that stretch. Liberty blanked the Seminoles in the following game to put themselves within touching distance. Rihane and Bulte responded with an otherworldly performance, winning four consecutive games to claim the second set, advance to the quarterfinals, and earn their spot in Seminole history. Rihane and Bulte became the 11th and 12th All-Americans in program history.
Florida State earned two All-American honors last season with Antoine Cornut-Chauvinc and Joshua Dous-Karpenschif. Cornut-Chauvinc earned five total All-American honors including four singles honors. Corey Craig claimed an All-American honor on Wednesday before seniors Rihane and Bulte claimed the fourth and fifth honors of the calendar year.
The winners advance to the quarterfinal round on Friday and face entries from conference foes Wake Forest. Craig is set to face No. 26 Dhakshineswar Suresh while Rihane and Bulte will battle No. 72 Luciano Tacchi and Luca Pow.
Live video and stats will be available at Seminoles.com.
NCAA - Men's Singles Main Draw - Round of 16
Corey Craig (FSU) def. #11 Paul Inchauspe (PRIN) 6-7 (2), 6-2, 6-1
NCAA - Men's Doubles Main Draw - Round of 16
#41 Youcef Rihane/Alex Bulte (FSU) def. Joaquim Almeida/Siwanat Auytayakul (LIB) 6-3, 6-1
NCAA - Men's Singles Main Draw - Quarterfinals
Corey Craig (FSU) vs. #26 Dhakshineswar Suresh (WAKE) - 11 a.m. ET
NCAA - Men's Doubles Main Draw - Quarterfinals
#41 Youcef Rihane/Alex Bulte (FSU) vs. #72 Luciano Tacchi/Luca Pow (WAKE) - 3 p.m. ET
For more information on the Florida State men's tennis program, check Seminoles.com and follow us on social media at Florida State Men's Tennis (FB) and FSUMTennis (IG and X).
Players Mentioned
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INSIDE SEMINOLES EPISODE: 14 | Fall Sports, New Facilities
Thursday, October 02
DB Earl Little Jr.: “Crazy physical game”
Wednesday, October 01
HC Mike Norvell: “It’s going to be emotional”
Wednesday, October 01
WR Duce Robinson: “This is why you come to Florida State”
Tuesday, September 30