TAMPA, Fla. – The FGCU men's tennis team ran into a tough USF team in its first dual match of the 2011 championship season. The Bulls turned away the Eagles in singles action and were also able to pick up the doubles point on their way to the victory.
The Blue and Green drop to 0-1 on the young season, while USF improved to 2-0 after sweeping FAMU earlier in the day.
In the No. 1 singles spot junior Matthew Rock (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Jacksonville University) fell to USF's Wael Kilani, 6-1, 6-0, earning the Bulls a victory in the top position. USF's Federico Sabogal and Romain Deridder each snagged straight-set wins over freshman Dean Tsamas (Lexington, Ky./Henry Clay HS) and sophomore Collin Brown (Tallahassee, Fla./Florida State University School), respectively, 6-0, 6-0, as did the nation's No. 114-ranked player, Lucas Jovita, defeating sophomore Gabriel Echeverry (Popayan, Columbia/Gimnasio Calibio) in No. 3 singles. Senior Steve Binninger (St. Augustine, Fla./Saint Joseph Academy) was taken down by Yannick Yoshizawa, 6-2, 6-0, and classmate Mitchell Lvovsky (Dania Beach, Fla./Keystone HS/Wingate University) was bested by Acuna Gerard, 6-1, 6-2.
The Bulls continued their success in the day's double play, picking up victories in all three matches on the afternoon. The team of Jovita and Adderly defeated the duo of Rock and Tsamas, 8-1, and the pair of Gerard and Yoshizawa trumped the tandem of Echeverry and Brown, 8-4. Additionally, the twosome of Deridder and Sabogal overcame the team of Binninger and Lvovsky, 8-5.
FGCU will return to the courts on Sunday for a meeting with FAMU in its second dual match of the 2011 campaign. The opening serve is scheduled for 1 p.m. Results and recaps of the action will be available on FGCUAthletics.com following the day's competition.
FGCU Singles Results
1. Kilani (USF) def. Rock (FGCU), 6-1, 6-0
2. Sabogal (USF) def. Tsamas (FGCU), 6-0, 6-0
3. Jovita (USF) def. Echeverry (FGCU), 6-0, 6-0
4. Gerard (USF) def. Lvovsky (FGCU), 6-1, 6-2
5. Yoshizawa (USF) def. Binninger (FGCU), 6-2, 6-0
6. Deridder (USF) def. Brown (FGCU), 6-0, 6-0
FGCU Doubles Results
1. Jovita and Adderly (USF) def. Rock and Tsamas (FGCU), 8-1
2. Gerard and Yoshizawa (USF) def. Echeverry and Brown (FGCU), 8-4
3. Deridder and Sabogal (USF) def. Binninger and Lvovsky (FGCU), 8-5
