University of South Carolina Upstate Athletics
Georgia Tech
Upstate Fights Back, But Fall 5-2 To Georgia Tech
1/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Jan. 18, 2009
ATLANTA - Facing a stiff test against 58th-ranked Georgia Tech in its season opener, the USC Upstate men's tennis team fell, 5-2, on Sunday morning at the Bill Moore Tennis Center. The Spartans made several remarkable runs during the match, including falling just short on the doubles point and then winning two of the final three singles matches to come inches short of pulling off the upset.
The Yellow Jackets (1-0) took control by sweeping all three doubles matches, although they had all they could handle in beating the Spartans for the point. The Yellow Jacket pair of Kevin King and Doug Kenny were the only pair to not be forced into a 16-game super-set, as they took care of freshman Edgar Rodriguez (Colombia) and junior Arnaldo Lovera (Caracas, Venezuela), 8-4, at No. 2. The rest of the Yellow Jackets narrowly escaped with Ryan Smith and Austin Roebuck securing the doubles point with a 9-7 win over junior Jack Roux (Puntas Arenas, Chile/Subercaseaux) and senior Leandro Osorio (Quillota, Chile/Subercaseaux) at No. 3 doubles. Guillermo Gomez and Elliot Potvin also wrapped up a 9-7 win over juniors Renzo Airaldi (Lima, Peru/Domingo Faustino Sarmiento) and Javier Tori (Lima, Peru/Markham College) at No. 1.
The Yellow Jackets (1-0 overall) won the first three singles in three sets to clinch the match, although Dusan Miljevic struggled against Roux before coming up with a 7-5, 6-3 win at the No. 3 slot.
However, down 4-0, the bottom half of the Spartans lineup took the courts and closed the gap. At No. 4 singles, Tori lost the first set to Smith, 6-2, but came back with a 6-2 win in the second set that helped him clinch a 6-4 win in the third set. Tori's win improved his record to 7-2 on the season.
Meanwhile, Lovera was in the midst of a tough match with Roebuck at No. 5 singles, winning the first set 7-6 before falling in the second set, 7-6. Roebuck managed to win the super-set tiebreaker to take the 12-10 win and send Lovera to his first defeat of the season.
However, Osorio posted a 6-4, 7-6 win over Kenny at No. 6 to wrap up the match and conclude Georgia Tech's 5-2 win.
The Spartans will take 12 days off before getting back on the courts on Jan. 30 when they face Troy in Troy, Ala., at 10 a.m. before heading up the road to face Alabama State in Montgomery, Ala., at 2:30 p.m.
