April 9, 2003

Columbia, S.C. – No. 13 South Carolina defeated No. 21 Wake Forest, 5-2, in chilly and overcast conditions to improve to 17-4 overall. The win marked the eleventh-straight home victory for USC, its longest streak since the 1984 season. It also gave the Gamecocks a perfect 8-0 record vs. Region II opponents in 2003 and their 19th-straight Region II win. Carolina’s hosts No. 2 Florida on Fri., April 11 at 2 p.m.

“This was a big win for us in terms of national positioning,” said head coach Kent DeMars. “Wake Forest is a very good team and playing well which will help us gain points to move up further in the rankings.”

The 11-match home win streak is the best under DeMars, and the school’s longest since winning 11 straight in 1984.

“It is awfully hard to stay undefeated at home, especially in the SEC,” said DeMars.

The Gamecocks won the doubles point with a pair of 8-6 victories by Tom Eklund and Angelo Niculescu at No. 1 and Marcus Westman and Geraldo Knorr at No. 3.

No. 47 Seth Rose won his singles match at No. 1 against Wake Forest’s 49th-ranked David Loewenthal. The senior dropped the first set, 6-4, but rallied to take the next two, 6-3, 6-4, for the win.

Marcus Westman and Eklund each extended their personal singles win streaks to four with victories against their Demon Deacon foes. Westman defeated David Bere, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 at No. 3 while Eklund triumphed against Mike Murray, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.

Ben Atkinson notched his team 15th dual match victory of the season with a straight set win over Brett Ross.

USC is 10-3 against ranked opponents this season and celebrates senior weekend by hosting two matches against top-ten teams, beginning with Florida Friday at 2 p.m.. The Gators are ranked No. 2 in the nation and are undefeated in SEC play. No. 8 Vanderbilt comes to Columbia for a 1p.m. Sunday match, the final regular-season contest for both teams.

No. 13 SOUTH CAROLINA (17-4, 5-4) 5, No. 21 Wake Forest (11-7) 2

Doubles
No. 1: Angelo Niculescu/Tom Eklund (USC) def. Derrick Spice/Brett Ross (WFU), 8-6
No. 2: Mike Murray/Trent Brendon (WFU) def. Seth Rose/Carl Wermee (USC) 8-2
No. 3: Marcus Westman/Geraldo Knorr (USC) def. David Loewenthal/Andrew Simpson (WFU), 8-6

USC wins the doubles point, leads 1-0

Singles
No. 1: #47 Seth Rose (USC) def. #49 David Loewenthal (WFU), 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
No. 2: Derrick Spice (WFU) def. #56 Angelo Niculescu (USC), 1-6, 6-1, 6-2
No. 3: Marcus Westman (USC) def. David Bere (WFU), 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
No. 4: Trent Brendon (WFU) def. Carl Wermee (USC), 4-6, 6-4, 6-1
No. 5: Tom Eklund (USC) def. Mike Murray (WFU), 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
No. 6: Ben Atkinson (USC) def. Brett Ross (WFU), 7-5, 6-4