March 5, 2015
Live Match Updates (Clemson) | Live Match Updates (Miami) | Season Statistics & Results
THE FLATS – Georgia Tech’s men’s tennis team goes on the road this weekend to open the Atlantic Coast Conference part of its schedule, visiting Clemson for a 5 p.m. match Friday and Miami at 12 noon Sunday.
MATCH INFORMATION – Unlike most of the non-conference matches, which used alternate scoring rules to speed up matches, all ACC matches will be played with AD scoring and doubles matches will be played to eight instead of six.
TEAM UPDATES – Georgia Tech (7-3), not ranked in this week’s Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings, won its most recent non-conference matches last weekend against Stetson (6-1) and Tennessee Tech (7-0). All three of its losses have come to ranked SEC teams – Georgia, Auburn, Tennessee. The Yellow Jackets have played only one road match to date, at No. 38 Auburn on Feb. 15. Clemson (7-5) enters ACC play ranked No. 52 this week after finishing third in last weekend’s Blue-Gray Invitational with wins over Alabama and Texas Tech. Miami (3-5) is unranked and hosts George Washington Friday before the Jackets visit. Tech lost to both teams last year in Atlanta by identical 5-2 scores.
SINGLES UPDATE – Tech’s top two players in the lineup are ranked in the ITA top 100 in singles – freshman Christopher Eubanks (Atlanta, Ga.) is No. 57 after building a 9-1 record at the No. 2 position this spring, including a pair of wins over top 20 foes, and junior Nathan Rakitt (Marietta, Ga.) is No. 90 with a 3-3 record at the No. 1 slot. Head coach Kenny Thorne shuffled his lineup for the Tennessee match, bumping freshman Michael Kay (Alpharetta, Ga.) up to the No. 3 spot, where he has a 4-4 mark (4-4 overall), and sophomore Cole Fiegel (Alachua, Fla.) up to No. 4 from the sixth spot with a 9-1 start this spring. Senior Eduardo Segura (Madrid, Spain) has won his last three matches playing No. 5 and has a 6-3 mark in dual matches. Sophomore Carlos Benito (Madrid, Spain) played No. 6 against Tennessee but higher in last weekend’s matches and improved to 8-1.
DOUBLES UPDATE – Tech has won the doubles point in eight of 10 matches this spring. No. 1 team Benito and Segura are 6-3 in their dual-match decisions this spring and stand No. 51 nationally in the ITA rankings. Eubanks and Kay are 4-2, and Fiegel and Rakitt are 2-1, moving between the No. 2 and 3 spots.
HEAD COACH Kenny Thorne SAYS – “We finally get to start our ACC schedule, and it’s a good and tough one. I think the ACC has six or seven teams in the top 30, so we have our work cut out for us. Starting on the road at Clemson and Miami is a good opportunity to fight through some tough teams on the road. We had a good week of practice, and we’re ready for some tough battles.”
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S TENNIS
Georgia Tech’s men’s tennis team is in its 17th year under head coach Kenny Thorne. The Yellow Jackets have played in the NCAA Championship 14 times. Connect with Georgia Tech Men’s Tennis on social media by liking their Facebook page, or following on Twitter (@GT_MTEN). For more information on Tech men’s tennis, visit Ramblinwreck.com.
