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Photo by: Julianne Shivers/Texas A&M Athletics
Tokac’s Gritty Win Pushes Aggies Past Owls, 4-2
May 03, 2025 | Men's Tennis
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION – Texas A&M junior Togan Tokac rallied for a hard-fought three-set victory to push the No. 16-seed Aggies to a 4-2 win over the Rice Owls in the first round of the NCAA Championships on a sun-drenched Saturday at the Mitchell Tennis Center.
Tokac, from Istanbul, Turkey, overcame a first-set setback to post a clutch 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Rice's Emir Sendogan and send the Aggies to a second-round showdown with the Baylor Bears. The Aggies battle the Bears at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Mitchell Tennis Center. The Bears eliminated the Nebraska Cornhuskers, 4-1, to advance to the second round.
"I did it because of my teammates," said Tokac, who tallied his team-best 14th dual match win of the season. "They helped me a lot. I love playing in front of the 12th Man and my teammates."
The match's outcome remained in the balance with two matches remaining with Tokac at court 5 and Alan Magadan in his own three-set battle at court 2. When Tokac clinched the match, the gritty Magadan was down 3-2 but on serve in a third-set tiebreaker.
"It wasn't looking good for a while," Aggie head coach Steve Denton said. "Rice won the doubles point like they did earlier this season, and we had a battle on our hands. You have to give a lot of credit to Togan and Alan for giving us a chance to win. Alan kept Togan from being out there by himself at 3-all and that was a major impact."
The Owls flew to an early 1-0 lead by taking the doubles point with wins at court 2 and court 3, but surprise starter Damien Salvestre quickly equalized with a dominating 6-0, 6-3 win at court 6. It was Salvestre's first action since late February.
Rice jumped back on top with a win on court 4, but the Aggies would tally the next three wins to hold off the gritty Owls, who were 6-1 victims to the Maroon & White earlier this spring. Grabbing straight-set wins to set up Tokac's heroics were freshman Theo Papamalamis and sophomore Tiago Pires. Papamalamis rolled past fellow Frenchman Arthus de la Bassetiere, 6-2, 6-1, on court 1, while Pires took care of Santiago Navarro, 6-3, 7-5, on court 3.
#18 Texas A&M 4, #47 Rice 2
DOUBLES
#4 Togan Tokac/Theo Papamalamis (A&M) vs. #88 Santiago Navarro/Petro Kuzmenok (RU) - 5-6, unfinished
Kabeer Kapasi/Arthus de la Bassetiere (RU) def. Alan Magadan/Tiago Pires (A&M) - 6-4
Eduardo Morais/Tommy Czalinski (RU) def. Giulio Perego/Ritesh Patil (A&M) - 6-4
Order of Finish - 3,2
SINGLES
#31 Theo Papamalamis (A&M) def. Arthus de la Bassetiere (RU) - 6-2, 6-1
#85 Alan Magadan (A&M) vs. Petro Kuzmenok (RU) - 7-6(1), 2-6, 6-6 (2-3) - unfinished
Tiago Pires (A&M) def. Santiago Navarro (RU) - 6-3, 7-5
Tommy Czaplinski (RU) def. Luke Casper (A&M) - 6-4, 6-2
Togan Tokac (A&M) def. Emir Sendogan (RU) - 2-6, 6-4, 6-3
Damien Salvestre (A&M) def. Kabeer Kapasi (RU) - 6-0, 6-3
Order of Finish - 6,4,1,3,5
Fans can watch Sunday's match through the live stream or follow with live stats. For more information on the tournament, visit the tournament hub.
General admission tickets to the first and second-round matches can be purchased in advance at https://12thmanfoundation.evenue.net/list/TN or during business hours by calling the ticket office at 1-888-99-AGGIE or 979-845-2311. General admission also will be available for purchase on match days at the Mitchell Tennis Center beginning one hour before the first match of the day. Students will be granted free admission with a valid student ID.
FOLLOW THE AGGIES
Visit 12thman.com for more information on Texas A&M men's tennis. Fans can keep up to date with the A&M men's tennis team on Facebook, Instagram/Threads and X by following @AggieMTEN.
Tokac, from Istanbul, Turkey, overcame a first-set setback to post a clutch 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Rice's Emir Sendogan and send the Aggies to a second-round showdown with the Baylor Bears. The Aggies battle the Bears at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Mitchell Tennis Center. The Bears eliminated the Nebraska Cornhuskers, 4-1, to advance to the second round.
"I did it because of my teammates," said Tokac, who tallied his team-best 14th dual match win of the season. "They helped me a lot. I love playing in front of the 12th Man and my teammates."
The match's outcome remained in the balance with two matches remaining with Tokac at court 5 and Alan Magadan in his own three-set battle at court 2. When Tokac clinched the match, the gritty Magadan was down 3-2 but on serve in a third-set tiebreaker.
"It wasn't looking good for a while," Aggie head coach Steve Denton said. "Rice won the doubles point like they did earlier this season, and we had a battle on our hands. You have to give a lot of credit to Togan and Alan for giving us a chance to win. Alan kept Togan from being out there by himself at 3-all and that was a major impact."
The Owls flew to an early 1-0 lead by taking the doubles point with wins at court 2 and court 3, but surprise starter Damien Salvestre quickly equalized with a dominating 6-0, 6-3 win at court 6. It was Salvestre's first action since late February.
Rice jumped back on top with a win on court 4, but the Aggies would tally the next three wins to hold off the gritty Owls, who were 6-1 victims to the Maroon & White earlier this spring. Grabbing straight-set wins to set up Tokac's heroics were freshman Theo Papamalamis and sophomore Tiago Pires. Papamalamis rolled past fellow Frenchman Arthus de la Bassetiere, 6-2, 6-1, on court 1, while Pires took care of Santiago Navarro, 6-3, 7-5, on court 3.
#18 Texas A&M 4, #47 Rice 2
DOUBLES
#4 Togan Tokac/Theo Papamalamis (A&M) vs. #88 Santiago Navarro/Petro Kuzmenok (RU) - 5-6, unfinished
Kabeer Kapasi/Arthus de la Bassetiere (RU) def. Alan Magadan/Tiago Pires (A&M) - 6-4
Eduardo Morais/Tommy Czalinski (RU) def. Giulio Perego/Ritesh Patil (A&M) - 6-4
Order of Finish - 3,2
SINGLES
#31 Theo Papamalamis (A&M) def. Arthus de la Bassetiere (RU) - 6-2, 6-1
#85 Alan Magadan (A&M) vs. Petro Kuzmenok (RU) - 7-6(1), 2-6, 6-6 (2-3) - unfinished
Tiago Pires (A&M) def. Santiago Navarro (RU) - 6-3, 7-5
Tommy Czaplinski (RU) def. Luke Casper (A&M) - 6-4, 6-2
Togan Tokac (A&M) def. Emir Sendogan (RU) - 2-6, 6-4, 6-3
Damien Salvestre (A&M) def. Kabeer Kapasi (RU) - 6-0, 6-3
Order of Finish - 6,4,1,3,5
Fans can watch Sunday's match through the live stream or follow with live stats. For more information on the tournament, visit the tournament hub.
General admission tickets to the first and second-round matches can be purchased in advance at https://12thmanfoundation.evenue.net/list/TN or during business hours by calling the ticket office at 1-888-99-AGGIE or 979-845-2311. General admission also will be available for purchase on match days at the Mitchell Tennis Center beginning one hour before the first match of the day. Students will be granted free admission with a valid student ID.
FOLLOW THE AGGIES
Visit 12thman.com for more information on Texas A&M men's tennis. Fans can keep up to date with the A&M men's tennis team on Facebook, Instagram/Threads and X by following @AggieMTEN.
Baylor Postgame: Steve Denton, Theo Papamalamis, Alan Magadan
Sunday, May 04
Rice Postgame: Togan Tokac
Saturday, May 03
NCAA Tournament Preview: Steve Denton, Raphael Perot
Tuesday, April 30
Spring Preview: Steve Denton
Monday, January 08
