April 10, 2002
Winston-Salem, NC –
South Carolina’s No. 24 ranked men’s tennis team took a break from SEC play to visit the No. 22 ranked Demon Deacons of Wake Forest on Wednesday. In the match, USC claimed their eighth shutout victory of the season with a 5-0 win. The Gamecocks are now 10-0 in non-conference play with only an April 16th contest with Clemson remaining on the non-conference schedule. With the win, South Carolina improves to 14-6 on the year. The loss drops Wake Forest to 15-4.
USC pulled ahead early by taking the doubles point, marking the second time in the past three matches they have achieved the feat. Ben Atkinson and David Nelson set the tone for the Gamecocks, taking an 8-6 victory over David Bere and Justin Kaufmann. After battling to an 8-8 tie with Mike Murray and Derrick Spice, the duo of Seth Rose and Carl Wermee put South Carolina on top with a 16-14 win in the tiebreak.
Singles play saw the Gamecocks claim victories in positions No. 1-4 before the match was called. No. 55 Seth Rose paced the Gamecocks with a straight-set victory over No. 41 David Loewenthal 6-3, 6-2. No. 75 Angelo Niculescu also recorded a straight set victory, winning over David Bere 7-6(2), 6-4. No. 90 Marcus Westman joined in with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Derrick Spice out of the No.3 position. David Nelson capped the Gamecock win with his second consecutive victory, a 7-6(5), 6-2 victory over Mike Murray.
USC wraps up SEC play against No. 15 Florida on Sunday. From there, South Carolina will travel to Belton, South Carolina, to battle Clemson in the regular season finale. The USC vs. Clemson match is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April, 16th.
Match Results
(24) South Carolina 5, (22) Wake Forest 0
Singles:
1. #55 Seth Rose (USC) def. #41 David Loewenthal (WFU) 6-3, 6-2
2. #75 Angelo Niculescu (USC) def. David Bere (WFU) 7-6 (2), 6-4
3. #90 Marcus Westman (USC) def. Derrick Spice (WFU) 7-5, 6-3
4. David Nelson (USC) def. Mike Murray (WFU) 7-6 (5), 6-2
5. Trent Brendon (WFU) vs. Carl Wermee (USC) 4-6, 6-3 – DNF
6. Justin Kaufmann (WFU) vs. Rodrigo Pacheco (USC) 1-2 – DNF
Doubles:
1. #53 Loewenthal/Brendon (WFU) def. Westman/Niculescu (USC) 8-6
2. Rose/Wermee (USC) def. Murray/Spice (WFU) 9-8 (14)
3. Nelson/Ben Atkinson (USC) def. Bere/Kaufmann (WF) 8-6
