Hokie ClubNCAA ChampionshipsTournament Information TULSA, Okla. - Virginia Tech senior Albert Larregola's career came to an end as he fell to Denes Lukacs of Baylor in straight sets during the second round of the NCAA Championships at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center on the campus of the University of Tulsa.
Ranked 45th in the latest ITA rankings, Larregola (Lleida, Spain) had defeated UC Irvine's Victor Lamm, ranked No. 123, on Wednesday to reach the round of 32. The No. 9 Lukacs though would not let Larregola advance any further as he won 6-2, 6-2, to reach the round of 16.
"It was windy here in Tulsa today, and Lukacs was just stronger," head coach Jim Thompson said. "Albert had his chances, but this guy was good. He made all the shots when they counted, and I just thought he had a little too much firepower for us. He was able to hit through the wind when it was in his face, and he served well. Albert didn't do anything really bad, but he just wasn't able to do anything to hurt this guy and put him on the defense."
The All-ACC honoree earlier had received an at-large selection, becoming the first Hokie since Arvid Puranen in 2006 to participate in the NCAA Championships. He finishes his time at Tech with a career record of 84-42. Along the way this season, he picked up victories over current No. 5 Daniel Vallverdu (Miami) and No. 24 J.P. Smith (Tennessee), while helping guide Tech to a 16-9 dual meet record and a trip to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
"To lose today was hard because that was the end of his career here, and he's done so many great things for our program," Thompson said. "He's been a great ambassador for tennis for Virginia Tech and will always be someone special in our program. To get to the second round of the NCAA Championships is amazing, and I'm very proud of him. I'm glad he's been here with us, but it's sad to see it come to an end."