Michigan State Men's Tennis Star Ozan Baris Reaches Semifinals
Michigan State tennis star Ozan Baris is one win away from playing for a national title. Baris is a sophomore at Michigan State and is the first Spartan to reach the semi-finals in program history.
Baris, the 8-seed in the 64-man tournament, put the smackdown on Ohio State's Jack Anthrop in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
Baris had an outstanding year with a singles record of 27-6 and a doubles record of 14-3. He has won numerous awards for his ability to steamroll the majority of his opponents, including the Freshman of the Year award last year and the Big Ten Player of the Year award this season. Also notably, Baris and his doubles partner Max Sheldon were ranked between 16th and first in the nation and won the ITA doubles national championship last year.
"I feel like from the start I had the hunger that I needed to and I started of really well, Baris said after Thursday's victory, per Michigan State Athletics. "I got the break the first game and just carried that through. From my end I was in the mindset from the start. I thought I played well and I converted the way that I wanted to. I brought a lot of fight, I thought that was a separating factor for me today."
Baris will face off against 29th-seeded Filip Planinsek from Alabama, on Friday at 11 a.m. Planinsek defeated 15-seeded Cooper Williams from Harvard in the quarterfinals. Based on the seeding, Baris has the advantage, but Filip Planinsek is a talented tennis player, and Baris will have his work cut out for him in a tough match.
Baris is the rock holding up Michigan State's sports scene right now. With most spring sports having wrapped up, Baris has made the Spartans quite relevant this month. Whether he's on the court or not, his game is solid, giving fans something to cheer about.
Baris is not just about winning and losing; he boosts team morale when things get rough and cares more about his progression as a player than anything else.
The young Spartan has made it this far, but his work is not done.
"It [being the first Spartan to reach the semifinals] doesn't mean much to me right now, the tournament's not over, he said. "We'll talk about that when I win the whole thing. Semifinals is nice, but nothing's the same as winning the whole thing."
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