May 22, 2003

South Carolina’s Seth Rose, ranked No. 48 in the nation, defeated sixth-seeded Janne Holmia of Florida to advance to the round of 16 at the NCAA Singles Championship. The senior from West Palm Beach, Fla., earned All-American status after his convincing 6-0, 2-0, ret., second-round victory.

“I had an unbelievable day out there,” said Rose. “Being an All-American is something that I have wanted throughout my career. I think that today’s match came down to me wanted it more than my opponent.”

Thursday’s matches were moved to indoor courts because of heavy rain in Athens. With the win, Rose advances to play Todd Widom of Miami (Fla.), ranked 21st in the nation by the ITA, on Friday at the University of Georgia’s Dan Magill Tennis Complex. Match time will be announced later today.

“Seth was in a zone today that I had never seen before,” said head coach Kent DeMars. “He was so focused on earning All-American status and his play reflected that. It was really something to watch.”

Rose becomes USC’s first All-American since Guillaume Legat reached semi-finals in 2001 and only the third singles player to earn All-American status since 1985.

“This is the highest honor you can earn as a collegiate player and someone that no one can ever take away from me,” added Rose.

NOTE: Follow Seth Rose’s third-round match live on Friday, May 23, through the University of Georgia’s NCAA Men’s Tennis Championships Page.