Aug. 5, 2012

KALAMAZOO, Mich. – South Carolina men’s tennis junior Chip Cox (Myrtle Beach, S.C./Myrtle Beach) won both his matches today at the USTA Boys 18 National Championships Sunday, advancing in the main draw of doubles and in the feed-in bracket of singles. Paired with University of Florida’s Gordon Watson, Cox scored a third-set tiebreak win in doubles in the afternoon after posting a straight-set win in the second round of the feed-in bracket of singles.

Playing their first tournament as a doubles tandem, Cox and Watson struggled in the first set of their third-round match against Deiton Baughman and James Boyd. The duo, seeded sixth at the event, rallied back from their 6-4 first-set loss to win the second by the same score. For the second time in as many matches, Cox and Watson’s fate would be decided in a third-set tiebreak. The newly formed team battled to the end and came out with a 1-0 (9) victory to advance to Tuesday’s round of 16, where they will face the 12th-seeded of Nolan Paige and Aaron Revzin.

In singles, Cox bounced back from Saturday’s loss in the main draw to power through a 6-4, 6-4 win over Colin Roller of Land O’Lakes, Fla., in the feed-in bracket. He advances to third-round qualifying in the bracket, facing Gregory Garcia of Poway, Calif., on Monday.

Follow the USTA Boys’ 18 National Championships at http://ustaboys.com/draws.html.