Over the next few weeks we'll count down the Top 10 moments in Virginia Tech sports in the 2010-11 sports season. Only one moment per sport is eligible for the countdown, otherwise this would just be seven or eight football moments and then it might as well have just been the football Top 10 and done in January. And since I was too lazy to do that and there isn't anything going on during the summer we're doing this. Hope you enjoy.
Our No. 9 moment of the 2010-11 sports season is similar to No. 10 in that it represented a team's apex during a season that showed a lot of promise. It saw the Hokies' men's tennis team, ranked No. 35 at the time, knock off its highest ranked team of the season in a match that gave that gave the team a little bit of revenge.
The Hokies' 2010 season ended in the second round of the NCAA tournament when No. 15 Louisville wholloped them, 4-1. The Cardinals then came to Blacksburg ranked No. 20 on March 4 looking to break Tech's six-match winning streak.
The Hokies' streak began after a loss to No. 1 Virginia dropped them to 3-4. But a road win against Maryland got the Hokies back on track going into a six-match homestand that culminated with their matchup against Louisville. Tech rolled off wins in each of those home matches to climb to 10-4 after dispatching of the Cards.
The final win was a tough one to come by, coming down to the last game of the last set of the last match. In the end, Pedro Graber won from the Hokies' No. 3 slot to give them the upset and claim the team's first win over Louisville since 2007.
Unfortunately for the Hokies, that would be the highlight of their season. They won just three of their last nine matches and fell in the second round of both the ACC and NCAA tournaments.
Other Highlights from the Men's Tennis Season:
- Luka Somen upsets UVa's No. 27 Michael Shabaz.
- Tech beats No. 34 Wake Forest on the road.
- Hokies qualify for fifth consecutive NCAA tournament.