Sept. 18, 2011
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina men’s tennis battled through Saturday action in both tournaments the team is playing. The quartet of Gamecocks playing in the Duke Fab 4 Invite had the most success, led by freshman Andrew Adams who scored his first collegiate win over a ranked player to advance in the Singles Black bracket. Inclement weather forced the event indoors on only six courts, which caused the suspension of doubles play and stretched singles action until nearly midnight.
Adams kicked off the long, dramatic day at Duke against SEC rival Ricky Doverspike of Alabama in the quarterfinals of the Black bracket. The Gamecock freshman out-worked his opponent ranked No. 108 in the country to take the first set in a tiebreaker then rolled to a 6-2 win in the second. In the semifinals, Adams took on No. 49 Chris Mengel of host Duke. The Blue Devil sophomore posted a 6-0, 6-2 win to send Adams into the third-place bracket, where he will play Louisville’s Andrew Carter on Sunday.
In the Single Blue bracket at the top of the event, South Carolina’s Nick Jones claimed the first set from No. 95 Anthony Rossi of Kentucky 6-4. The Wildcats’ junior rallied back to win the next two sets 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the semifinals. Jones moved into the fifth-place bracket, topping Robbie Mudge of NC State 6-2, 1-6, 1-0 (6) to set up Sunday’s fifth-place match against North Carolina’s Joey Burkhardt.
Sophomore Chip Cox put himself in the consolation semifinals of the Singles White bracket with a hard-fought win over Radford’s Patrick O’Keefe. Cox won the first set 6-4, but stumbled in the second 6-2. He recovered to win the third-set super-tiebreaker 10-4 to advance. Facing Alabama’s Michael Thompson, Cox was rallying after a 6-4 first-set loss but lost a heartbreaking second set 7-5 to drop into the consolation third-place match against Radford’s Nick Sayer, who is ranked No. 112 in the country. Also in the White bracket, freshman Carl Eguez fell to No. 93 Fred Saba of Duke in the quarterfinals 6-1, 6-2.
At UNC Wilmington, senior Henry Walker scored the lone victory for the Gamecocks. Teaming with Matt Kealy of the host school, Walker scored an 8-0 win in the consolation side of the Doubles Flight B bracket. After dropping a three-set match to Campbell’s August Iwdal late Friday night, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3, in Flight C Singles, Walker suffered a 7-5, 6-0 defeat at the hands of UNCW’s Sam Williams on Saturday. Freshmen Ben Barnette and Kyle Koch stumbled in their Flight A Singles consolation matches. Koch won his first set against Campbell’s Adrien Rossignon 7-5 but fell in the second 6-3. Rossignon took the win in a third-set super tiebreaker.
Duke Fab 4 Invite
Singles Blue
(95) Anthony Rossi (UK) def. Nick Jones (SC) 4-6, 6-3, 6-2
Jones (SC) def. Robbie Mudge (NCS) 6-2, 1-6, 1-0 (6)
Singles Black
Andrew Adams (SC) def. (108) Ricky Doverspike (ALA) 7-6 (5), 6-2
(49) Chris Mengel (DU) def. Adams (SC) 6-0, 6-2
Singles White
Chip Cox (SC) def. Patrick O’Keefe (RU) 6-4, 2-6, 1-0 (4)
Michael Thompson (ALA) def. Cox (SC) 6-4, 7-5
(93) Fred Saba (DU) def. Carl Eguez (SC) 6-1, 6-2
UNCW Collegiate Tennis Invitational
Doubles Flight A
Mark/Young (TUL) def. Kyle Koch/Ben Barnette (SC) 8-5
Doubles Flight B Consolation
Matt Kealy (UNCW)/Henry Walker (SC) def. Jones/Kinney (CAM) 8-0
Flight A Singles Consolation
Robert Pietrucha (W&M) def. Ben Barnette (SC) 6-0, 6-1
Adrien Rossignon (CAM) def. Kyle Koch (SC) 5-7, 6-3, 1-0 (2)
Flight C Singles
August Iwdal (CAM) def. Henry Walker (SC) 4-6, 6-1, 6-3
Sam Williams (UNCW) def. Henry Walker (SC) 7-5, 6-0
