USF tennis star on the rise, ranked among best collegiate players in the country

TAMPA, Fla. - Alvin Tudorica's time has arrived. The senior came to the University of South Florida as a top tennis recruit from Toronto four years ago, but his game needed time to grow. 

His passion for the sport pushed him through frustrating times.

"Everyone goes through bad times," Tudorica said. "So, I just felt that I needed to stay there and stay with it. It may be tough, but you have to enjoy it and stay there. It's part of the passion, I guess."

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His coach, Ashley Fisher, recruited Tudorica, because he could see untapped talent, but after seeing his relentless work ethic on the court, he knew he had something special.

"I remember vividly when he was a freshman he had only been here for a few weeks," Fisher said. "I do this sometimes where I ask if anyone wants to do a tiebreak with everybody watching. Just stop everything in the middle of practice. Al immediately put up his hand. I remember thinking like ‘this kid has something special.’"

Tudorica's game is on the rise, currently ranked among the best collegiate players in the country. In singles, he's 27th. In doubles with teammate Erik Grevelius, they've earned a top 10 ranking.

"I think that comes from hanging out a lot outside of practice," Grevelius said. "We do an extra hour in the afternoon. So I know what he's going to do every time he's going to do it, and he knows what I feel comfortable doing as well. So I think that's the key to our success so far."

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This past fall, Tudorica's game reached another level. He won five straight matches at the ITA Regionals. He's earning him a spot in the National Fall Championships where he reached the quarterfinals. 

"Of course very proud," Tudorica said. "There's still room to be even better, even with the great fall that I had."

Both seniors have professional aspirations after graduating, but their focus now is not only earning a spot in the NCAA tournament, but winning it. It would be a crowning moment on their college careers.