Nov. 9, 2014

ATHENS, Ga. – South Carolina men’s tennis closed its fall season with another winning day at the Bulldog Scramble at the Dan Magill Tennis Center at the University of Georgia. The Gamecocks won all four of their singles matches, while seniors Kyle Koch and Thiago Pinheiro remained perfect in doubles at the tournament with another win.

Match Changer

Koch posted his second 6-0, 6-0 victory in as many days of the tournament. He powered past Louisville’s Pally Ray on Sunday after posting the same score against Ray’s teammate Santiago Salazar on Saturday.

Key Stat

Pinheiro wrapped up his fall with four straight wins, including Sunday’s 6-2, 6-2 win over Georgia Tech’s Daniel Yun. Koch and freshman Harrison O’Keefe won their last three matches of the fall season after posting wins on Sunday. Sophomores Andrew Schafer and Sam Swank also closed the season on a win streak as they won their last two matches of the event, including Schafers’ three-set victory over Kentucky’s Jerry Lopez on Sunday.

Other Notables

• At the three-day event, the Gamecocks posted a 5-4 record in doubles and a 16-12 singles mark.
• South Carolina played 10 three-set matches at the Bulldog Scramble, lifting its fall total to 27 in 74 singles matches – 36.5 percent. The Gamecocks are 11-16 in three-set matches this season after going 4-6 in them this weekend.
• Pinheiro picked up the Gamecocks’ lone win over a ranked opponent this weekend, topping No. 118 Beck Pennington of Kentucky on Saturday.

Next Up

South Carolina will not play again until the spring dual-match season begins. The Gamecocks’ schedule, which features 17 matches against teams that finished last season ranked in the top 50, including at least nine from the top 25, will be announced later this month.

South Carolina Results

Singles
Harrison O’Keefe (SC) def. Van Damrongsri (UL) 6-3, 6-0
Kyle Koch (SC) def. Pally Ray (UL) 6-0, 6-0
Thiago Pinheiro (SC) def. Daniel Yun (GT) 6-2, 6-2
Andrew Schafer (SC) def. Jerry Lopez (UK) 1-6, 6-4, 6-1

Doubles
Koch/Pinheiro (SC) def. William Bushamuka/Trey Yates (UK) 8-4
Wayne Montgomery/Nick Wood (UG) def. Mayronne/O’Keefe (SC) 8-4
Elijah Melendez/Daniel Yun (GT) def. Schafer/Swank (SC) 8-5