The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

With his family on the sidelines, Justin Roberts turned in one of his best performances as a collegiate tennis player in Tampa, Florida, over the weekend.

On Saturday, the No. 17th ranked University of South Florida Bulls men’s tennis team dropped a 5-2 decision to the third ranked Texas Christian University. But they bounced back on Sunday, pulling off a 4-3 decision over No. 19 Michigan at the USF Varsity Tennis Courts.

In both match-ups, the 6-feet sophomore secured two singles victories and he and Dominic Cotrone won their two doubles matches together.

“It was a great weekend,” said Roberts as he took a break from the celebrations with the team and his family. “We had two great teams that came in and I won two great singles matches. I think I played very solid in both singles. So it was good to get the performances that I got this weekend.”

In Saturday’s opener against TCU, Roberts pulled off an impressive 6-2, 6-2 win over Eduardo Nava. Dominic Cotrone and Roberts picked up a 6-4 win over Cameron Norrie and Trevor Johnson to give the Bulls one of the three doubles wins. Cid and Sasha Gozun were reunited as partners at the No. 2 spot, but dropped a hard fought battle, 7-6.

On Sunday against Michigan, Roberts (Nassau, Bahamas) picked up where he left off, winning 6-1,7-6 (7-5) over , the 2015 Big Ten Sportsmanship Honouree. The 46th-ranked tandem of Dominic Cotrone (Bradenton, Fla.) and Roberts started fast and led 5-0, before winning the set, 6-4. Peter Bertran and Everth Dzib were paired in the third position, and clinched the doubles point for USF with a 7-5 result.

Roberts, 19, said he’s been working extremely hard and his effort is starting to pay off with his results.

“I’ve dedicated myself to the sport and everyday I have a purpose of where I want to go,” he said. “So it’s showing in my matches and I’m playing better and better. We still have some more big matches coming up at home, so we are trying to get some big wins to improve on our rankings going into the NCAAs. So I’m just trying to improve individually and helping out the team as much as I can.”

USC’s head coach Matt Hill had nothing but high marks for Roberts and the way he’s performing right now.

“He’s come a long way. He went to the Dominican Republic to play a couple of Futures Tournament in December and he beat some of the guys there who were in the top 500 and he came back and worked really hard in training,” Hill said. “I think that was the turning point for him.

“He’s made the necessary adjustments and he’s had some really good performances for us, not only in singles, but also in doubles here he and Dominic are now becoming one of the best doubles teams in the country. But in singles, I think this was a turning point for him. He had a big win over one of their best players, so we have been very impressed with how he’s come along lately.”

As the season progresses, Hill said if Roberts can work on the tactical areas that he’s had his problems with in the past, he’s confident that he can become an exceptional collegiate player and eventually a pro.

“I think after losing some matches in January and February, his work ethic never wavered,” Hill said. “He came out on the court and just tried to work through the areas that he needed to improve on. He’s constantly motivated and when you have a guy like Justin, who is an incredible athlete with a work ethic, there’s nothing but success for him in the future.”

While his father Bruno Roberts was on hand to watch a few of his matches during his freshman year last year, Roberts said he was extremely proud to see his mother, Sonjia, and his sister, Savannah, all in the stands cheering for him and the Bulls.

“Its good because its not very often that they get to watch me play,” Robert said. “My father was here for a couple games last year, but my mother haven’t seen me play since I was about 9-10, so it was nice for them to see me get these two wins. They brought a lot of emotions for me on the court. I had a lot of fun too because my mother was the loud one. She really got into it, so it was good to have them here.”

Hill said it was a fun weekend for him with his family cheering for him.

“I think that meant a lot to him,” he said. “He got a chance to play in front of them and he didn’t disappoint them at all. I think they were all very pleased with the progress he made. It showed on the court this weekend as he took his game to another level. We are all very proud of his accomplishment.”

Now that the weekend is done, Roberts said it’s back to work as they prepare for another big weekend as they host a Spring Break Tournament from March 11-13 at the Varsity Tennis Courts. The tournament will start with the Bulls facing Penn State on Friday at 2:30 pm.