The Texas A&M men’s tennis team competed in the early stages of the international ITF Futures tournament in Birmingham, Alabama last weekend.
The play from Saturday to Monday was a 128 man national qualifier singles tournament where the top 32 advanced to main draw play come this week. The doubles tournament is a 16 team tournament with play beginning Tuesday.
The qualifier saw sophomores AJ Catanzariti and Jordi Arconada. Arconada entered in the qualifier for the main draw singles play beginning on the 30th, while Catanzariti joined his teammate to compete in doubles.
Round of 128 singles play began Friday with Arconada, a 13-seed, taking on 17-year-old tennis prospect Pietro Rimondini. Arconada won consecutive sets by scores of 6-1 and 6-4 to advance to round of 64 play.  
The round of 64 on Saturday featured Arconada against 21-year-old Brazilian Luiz Felipe Pinto. Arconada won his second and final qualifying match by narrow margins of 6-4 and 6-4. With this victory, Arconada joined the round of 32 to begin Monday where his match against Spanish opponent Robert Herrera was postponed to Tuesday.
The fifth day of the Futures tournament was also the first day of doubles play, where Arconada and teammate Catanzariti faced off against Evan King and Chad Rhoden in the round of 16.
The two A&M representatives look ahead to the upcoming matches and will try to clinch wins in singles and doubles on Nov. 8, where a champion will be declared for both divisions.
Beyond the Futures tournament, the Aggie men will then move on to the LSU invitational beginning Thursday in Baton Rouge. The Invitational will be their second-to-last winter tournament before season play begins in January.