Orlando, Fla.– A sophomore, Cassone is the first Sun Devil Men’s Tennis All-American since 1995 and has qualified for the ITA/ATP Accelerator Program. The Kansas native won five straight matches in the NCAA postseason before he fell short on Friday afternoon to No. 8 Ondrej Styler (Michigan) 1-6, 2-6.
“It’s obviously not the result we were hoping for today. It wasn’t our best tennis of the week, we just couldn’t get a foothold in the match, but credit goes out to Styler from Michigan who played exceptionally well today and didn’t allow us to breathe,” head coach Matt Hill said. “All in all, though we have to step back and look at what a great body of work Murphy was able to do this week, beating some of the nations very best, and reaching the semifinals as a sophomore. It’s an incredible accomplishment, and what a bright future ahead for him and Sun Devil Tennis. Thank you Sun Devil Nation for all your support though out the season and this week in particular, we will be back and even stronger next season. I’m excited for what’s to come.”
A rain delay pushed the event indoors, and hours later than the anticipated start time for Cassone and Styler.
In the first set, Cassone was unable to get a rhythm against Styler which resulted in a lone point for the Sun Devil. Styler continued his run until Cassone put himself on the board at 4-1. A final push came, but ultimately was not enough to get back into the match.
Cassone had two aces and went 50% in breakpoints.
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