Feb. 9, 2008

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The University of South Carolina men’s tennis squad improved its non-conference record to an unblemished 6-0 on Saturday, defeating Charlotte, 6-1, and Davidson, 6-1, at the USC Indoor Fieldhouse. Leading the Gamecocks was senior Yevgeny Supeko who captured two victories at No. 1 singles, while sophomores Pedro Campos (No. 2) and Diego Cubas (No. 3) also picked up two singles wins on the day.

In the morning match, Carolina dropped the doubles point, falling at the No. 2 and 3 positions. At No. 1, the team of Supeko and Cubas easily defeated Jeff Archer and Jesse Hutchinson, 8-1. At the No. 2 position, Jaime Cuellar and David Wolff battled back from a 7-3 deficit to tie the match at 7-7, however, the Bernhoerster brothers held strong in the end, taking the match 9-7. Chris Huynh and Michael Anders defeated Chris Sheehan and Joe Veeder in a competitive match at No. 3, 8-6.

Campos was the first to claim victory in singles action for the Gamecocks. He defeated Ricky Cuellar, brother of USC’s Jaime, 6-1, 6-2 at the No. 2 position. Carolina quickly secured the match victory, as Supeko at No. 1, Cubas at No. 3 and Cressoni at No. 4 all proved victorious in their respective match. Pulsfort also picked up a victory at the No. 5 position and Stoddard capped off the Gamecock singles sweep with a much-deserved win at No. 6.

Carolina rebounded from a doubles defeat in the morning match to secure the point in the second match, 2-1. Campos and Pulsfort defeated Flaviu Simihaian and Ethan Jaffee, 8-3, followed by Cuellar and Cressoni’s win at No. 2 over Phillip Compeau and Eric Noble, 8-4. Veeder and Stoddard completed the Gamecock sweep in doubles at the No. 3 position with an 8-5 victory over Walker Lyons and Sam Burns.

USC continued to dominate in singles play, winning five of its six matches against the Wildcats. Supeko, Campos and Cubas proved victorious at the No. 1, 2 and 3 positions, respectively. Continuing to rehab from a knee injury last season, Cuellar dominated at No. 4 singles, taking a 6-4, 6-2 decision against Lyons. Pulsfort picked up his second singles victory of the day at No. 5, and Sheehan lost a hard-fought battle at the No. 6 position.

Carolina returns to action next Sunday, Feb. 17, at No. 11 Wake Forest in its first road event of the season. Match time is set for 1 p.m.

Charlotte Match Results
Singles:
1. Yevgeny Supeko def. Felix Bernhoerster, 6-2, 6-1
2. Pedro Campos def. Ricky Cuellar, 6-1, 6-2
3. Diego Cubas def. Michael Anders, 6-3, 6-3
4. Ivan Cressoni def. Moritz Bernhoerster, 6-3, 6-2
5. Johannes Pulsfort v. Chris Huynh, 6-1, 6-3
6. Thomas Stoddard v. Jeff Archer, 7-6 (7), 6-3, 1-0 (3)
Order of finish: 2, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6

Doubles:
1. Supeko/Cubas def. Archer/Hutchinson, 8-1
2. Bernhoerster/Bernhoerster def. Cuellar/Wolff, 9-7
3. Huynh/Anders def. Sheehan/Veeder, 8-6
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3

Davidson Match Results
Singles:
1. Yevgeny Supeko v. Flaviu Simihaian, 6-3, 6-4
2. Pedro Campos v. Ehan Jaffee, 6-3, 6-1
3. Diego Cubas v. Eric Noble, 6-3, 6-1
4. Jaime Cuellar def. Walker Lyons, 6-4, 6-2
5. Johannes Pulsfort v. Sam Burns, 6-2, 6-2
6. Scott Meyers def. Chris Sheehan,
Order of finish: 2, 4, 3, 1, 5, 6

Doubles:
1. Campos/Pulsfort def. Simihaian/Jaffee, 8-3
2. Cuellar/Cressoni v. Compeau/Noble, 8-4
3. Veeder/Stoddard v. Lyons/Burns, 8-5
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3