Men?s Tennis Closes Regular Season in Winning Form
4/18/2011 12:42:00 AM | Men's Tennis
STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Men's Tennis team (10-12, 3-7 SoCon) closed its regular season on a winning note, defeating Chattanooga (7-15, 2-8 SoCon) 4-3 on Sunday afternoon at the Hanner Tennis Complex. With its third straight win over Chattanooga, the victory moves the Eagles to 13-14 all-time against the Mocs. Juan Melian Puigventos (Las Palmas De Las Canaria, Spain) won his15th-straight match and 21st victory at No. 1 singles, the second-most wins for an Eagle in singles play. The two programs meet again Wednesday, April 20th, in the first round of the SoCon Championship.
"Today's match was fitting for senior day, all year Mark [Paetz], Alex [Yuille] and Thomas [Bekkers] have led the team with their work ethic and their focus every day," said Head Coach Nick Zieziula. "That was the difference in today's match, an extra point here and there that we fought for a little bit more. We are looking forward to facing Chattanooga again on Wednesday."
Georgia Southern set the tone early, winning two of the three matches in doubles action to earn the doubles point. At No. 3, Derrick Davison (Peachtree City, Ga.) and Alain Garrido (Vigo, Spain) breezed through their set, winning 8-2. The number-one doubles seed of Melian Puigventos and Matthijs Verdam (Hilversum, The Netherlands) won on the final point of the match, 9-8, thanks to a 7-3 tiebreak.
The Eagles' determination was tested throughout singles play. Chattanooga battled against Georgia Southern to tie the match twice before wins on court one and five clinched the match. Melian Puigventos, Verdam and Mark Paetz (Munich, Germany) provided victories at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 5 singles.
Verdam downed Chattanooga's Chris Smith in straight sets 6-4, 6-3 at the number-two spot to pull the Eagles ahead 2-1. The win moves Verdam to 8-3 on court two and 15-6 overall.
The Mocs quickly tied the match back up, 2-2, at No. 6 singles, but Melian Puigventos recaptured Georgia Southern's lead at the top of the lineup. For just the third time this season, Melian Puigventos needed a third set in singles play. Cruising to a 6-0 win in the first set, the sophomore slipped 4-6 in the second set before recovering in the final set to win 6-3. The victory extends his record to 21-1 overall, currently the all-time best winning-percentage in season singles play.
GSU relied on another third set to seal the victory as Paetz, the team's captain, won his final set at No. 5 singles, 6-3, to clinch the match.
The Eagles have two days off from competition before traveling to the 2011 Southern Conference Championships. The 2011 SoCon Championships take place April 20th-23rd at the Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tenn.
For more information on Georgia Southern Men's Tennis, follow the Eagles at GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/mtennis or receive short updates at twitter.com/GSAthletics or facebook.com/GSAthletics.
Georgia Southern 4, Chattanooga 3
Apr 17, 2011 at Statesboro, Ga. (Hanner Tennis Complex)
Singles competition
1. J. Melian Puigventos (GSU) def. Roberto Vieira (UTC) 6-0, 4-6, 6-3
2. Matthijs Verdam (GSU) def. Chris Smith (UTC) 6-4, 6-3
3. Jackson Tresnan (UTC) def. Alain Garrido (GSU) 7-5, 6-7 (6-8), 2-3, retired
4. R. van de Bovenkamp (UTC) def. Edio Castanhel (GSU) 7-5, 6-2
5. Mark Paetz (GSU) def. William Disterdick (UTC) 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3
6. Stephen Crofford (UTC) def. Sebastien Felt (GSU) 6-4, 7-5
Order of finish: 4, 2, 6, 1, 5, 3
Doubles competition
1. J. Melian Puigventos/Matthijs Verdam (GSU) def. Chris Smith/William Disterdick (UTC) 9-8 (7-3)
2. Stephen Crofford/Jackson Tresnan (UTC) def. Edio Castanhel/Marco Osorio (GSU) 8-6
3. Alain Garrido/Derrick Davison (GSU) def. Roberto Vieira/Orlando Lourenco (UTC) 8-2
Order of finish: 3, 2, 1
