Title Hunting
4/1/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 1, 2008
Complete Weekly Release in PDF Format 
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - After playing for 19 years in the toughest Division II tennis conference in America, the USC Upstate women's tennis team enters this weekend with a chance to do something it never could do in the Peach Belt Conference: win a regular-season championship. Thanks to an emotional 5-2 win over Jacksonville on Saturday, the Spartans, at 14-3 overall and 8-0 in the Atlantic Sun Conference, can clinch a share of the regular-season title with wins against both Gardner-Webb and Campbell this weekend. The Bulldogs enter the week at 6-11 overall and 3-5 in the conference and the Camels are 14-5 overall and 5-3 in the A-Sun.
Still In It
Meanwhile, the USC Upstate men's tennis team still has a shot at taking a piece of the Atlantic Sun Conference regular season championship is it can manage wins against Gardner-Webb (11-9 overall, 3-3 A-Sun) and Campbell (14-5 overall, 6-1 A-Sun) that would force a showdown with 33rd-ranked ETSU on Wednesday, April 9.
Record-Hunting
Sophomore Renzo Airaldi and senior Sebastian Gonzales-Orbegoso are entering the week with a chance to tie school records for singles wins. Airaldi won his 25th match of the season on Saturday at Jacksonville, moving just two wins shy of the 16-year old school record of 27 wins set by James Homan in 1992. Gonzales-Orbegoso defeated Vinicius Craveiro, 6-3, 6-2 at No. 5 singles for his 55th career win, just two shy of the career singles record of 57 set by Jorge Ventura from 1993-96. Both players have four dual matches left this season to break the marks.
Super-Novo
Junior Anna Novo added another school record to her arsenal on Friday afternoon at North Florida as she set the school record for combined wins (singles and doubles) in a season, as she earned her 21st doubles win of the year with freshman partner Emilia Milovanovic and added her 25th singles win at the No. 1 slot for Upstate. She passed the mark of 44 set by senior Susana Hernandez (Cali, Columbia/Colegio Americano), who went 44-12 (20-6 in singles, 24-6 in doubles) in 2006-07 with her doubles win. For good measure, Novo also passed the men's record, set by Jorge Ventura in 1995-96, when he went 45-18 (21-10 in singles, 24-8 in doubles) for then-USC Spartanburg. She currently has 47 wins this season (26 singles and 21 doubles).
Renzo's Roll
Sophomore Renzo Airaldi has four matches left and needs three wins to break the school record of 27 singles wins set by James Homan during the 1991-92 season. Airaldi, who plays No. 2 singles for the Spartans, currently has an overall record of 25-7, just two wins away from the record. A 2007 Division II All-American as a doubles player, Airaldi saw action in just seven singles matches as a freshman, winning six, making his rise to the top of the Spartan lineup this season one of the most pleasant surprises on the team.
It's Always Better To Share
Junior Leandro Osorio became just the fifth men's player in school history to reach 50 in a career when he and senior partner Sebastian Gonzales-Orbegoso posted a win at the No. 1 slot on Friday at North Florida. Osorio has posted an impressive 50-20 career doubles record. He joins Gonzales-Orbegoso (54), Diego Sist (50), Jose Luis Reyes (63) and Stefan Dumitrescu (72) in the club.
Leaving Their Mark
Seniors Diana Martinez and Susana Hernandez will leave the USC Upstate Tennis Complex this weekend having secured their places in school history. Martinez is the school's all-time win leader in ever category, having posted 70 singles wins and 63 doubles wins. Her 133 combined wins is 12 ahead of her nearest competition in Hernandez. Hernandez, who was ranked 31st in Division II at the end of last season, has won 62 doubles matches, which is second in school history, and 61 singles matches, which is third. Her 123 combined wins is second.
Sophomore Extravaganza
The USC Upstate men's team lineup is not just already one of the most successful in school history, it is also still incredibly young. Four players currently in the starting six in singles are still just sophomores, yet each of them is already in the top 20 in school history in singles wins. Sophomore Jack Roux, who is currently playing at the No. 3 slot, leads the way with 33 wins, which is 17th in the school record book. Renzo Airaldi, who is currently at the No. 2 slot, is tied for 18th with 31 career singles wins, along with Arnaldo Lovera and Javier Tori.
