IOWA CITY, Iowa -- The nationally-ranked University of Iowa men’s tennis team will send a pair of seniors to the ITA All-American Championships this weekend hosted by the University of Tulsa at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center.
Kareem Allaf and Jason Kerst will represent the Hawkeyes beginning Saturday. Kerst will be competing in the singles pre-qualifying round to kick off the event. This will be Kerst’s first appearance at the ITA All-American Championships.
“The ITA All-American event is the first big event of the yea,” said Mellecker Family Head Men’s Tennis Coach Ross Wilson. “I’m excited to see Jason compete. He has had a great summer with some big wins. He’s really improved his game. Being a senior, let’s see what he can do in the pre-qualifying event.”
Allaf on the other hand is no stranger to this event and comes into his senior season as the No. 69th ranked player in the country. A year ago, the Allaf put together a nice run, advancing to the Round of 128, before being edged in the three sets. A few weeks later, Allaf won the ITA Central Regional singles championship at the same venue that he and Kerst will be competing this weekend -- the Michael D. Case Tennis Center. Allaf stands with Bryan Crowley (1994) and Tyler Cleveland (1999) as the only Iowa players in program history to accomplish the feat.
“Kareem is coming off a great summer, picking up a bunch of ATP points,” Wilson said. “He also beat a couple high-level players on a consistent basis. It’s a great opportunity for him to grab a couple ranked wins and hopefully advance to the main draw.”
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