Feb. 17, 2007
Auburn, Ala. - The 40th-ranked Auburn men's tennis team captured its fifth straight win of the season on Saturday afternoon, with a 6-1 victory over 37th-ranked Georgia Tech at the Auburn Intramural Courts.
With the win, Auburn moved to 5-0 on the season, while Georgia Tech dropped to 2-3. Auburn has now won its first five matches of the season for three straight years. Auburn is now 12-20 all-time versus the Yellow Jackets and 6-4 under head coach Eric Shore.
"We played well as a team today," Shore said. "Georgia Tech had to come and play outside in windy and cold conditions that they aren't used to in their indoor facility. We practiced all week outside despite the cold weather and I think that helped us today. I am proud of our guys for stepping up. Alex [Schweizer] did a great job of coming back after losing the first set and Pawel [Dilaj] got the job done in singles to help us take a 2-0 lead. He pumped up the team and kept the momentum going in our direction."
The Tigers and Yellow Jackets were neck-and-neck during the doubles competition. Alexey Tsyrenov and Milan Krnjetin took the first victory, 8-4, over Georgia Tech's Zach Rath and Scott Blackmon. Georgia Tech picked up the win at the No. 2 spot, defeating Terence Nugent and Alex Schweizer, 8-6.
The doubles point was left up for grabs at the No.1 court. Robbert Lathouwers and Lukas Marsoun battled it out with Eric Molnar and Luke Rassow-Kantor and took the doubles point with a 9-7 victory. Lathouwers and Marsoun move to 4-0 in doubles competition this year.
The Tigers won five of six singles matches and four of the six matches were decided in three sets. Pawel Dilaj put Auburn up 2-0 with a win over Rassow-Kantor, 6-2, 6-4, at the No. 6 spot. Auburn took the next three singles to clinch the team victory. Lathouwers won in straight sets over No. 100 Molnar, 6-0, 7-6 (7-2) on the No.2 court. Schweizer fought back from a 0-6 loss on court one in the first set, to take the next two, 6-4, 6-0, over No. 36 David North. In a rowdy match with Tech's Jordan DeLass, Marsoun won, 5-7, 6-3, 6-3.
At No.3 singles, Krnjetin and Georgia Tech's Jose Muguruza came down to the wire as Muguruza came out on top, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5. Auburn finished the Ramblin' Wreck off with a victory at No. 5 singles as Tsyrenov defefeated Rath, 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-2.
The Tigers will be back in action on Feb. 20 at the Brooke Highland Racquet Club in Birmingham, Ala., for a 1:30 p.m. matchup with UAB.
Doubles Results
1. Lukas Marsoun/Robbert Lathouwers (AU) def. Eric Molnar/Luke Rassow-Kantor (GT) 9-7
2. George Gvelesiani/David North (GT) def. Terence Nugent/Alex Schweizer (AU) 8-6
3. Alexey Tsyrenov/Milan Krnjetin (AU) def. Zach Rath/Scott Blackmon (GT) 8-4
Singles Results
1. Alex Schweizer (AU) def. #36 David North (GT) 0-6, 6-4, 6-0
2. Robbert Lathouwers (AU) def. #100 Eric Molnar (GT) 6-0, 7-6 (7-2)
3. Jose Muguruza (GT) def. Milan Krnjetin (AU) 2-6, 6-3, 7-5
4. Lukas Marsoun (AU) def. Jordan DeLass (GT) 5-7, 6-3, 6-3
5. Alexey Tsyrenov (AU) def. Zach Rath (GT) 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-2
6. Pawel Dilaj (AU) def. Luke Rassow-Kantor (GT) 6-2, 6-4