June 1, 2016
THE FLATS – Georgia Tech’s Christopher Eubanks has received a wild card entry into the main doubles draw for the BB&T Atlanta Open, which begins July 30 and runs through Aug. 7 at Atlantic Station. Tournament organizers announced the wild card Wednesday afternoon.
It is the sixth straight year an active Yellow Jacket player has participated in the U.S. Open Series event. Eubanks received the wild card invitation along with Zackery Kennedy of Georgia State, a junior from Atlanta who attended Westlake High School with Eubanks. They will participate as doubles partners.
Eubanks hopes to replicate his success in last year’s BB&T Atlanta Open, when he and partner Donald Young advanced to the semifinals of the main draw, where they lost to the world No. 1 team of Bob and Mike Bryan.
“I’m very excited to get this opportunity to play in the BB&T again, to play with Zack and play against some of the best players in the world,” said Eubanks. “This wasn’t really expected, and I knew that Georgia gets the wild card invitation every other year. I’ll still try and get in [singles] through the qualifying. It’s a great opportunity to play with Zach and against some of the best players in the world. [Zack and I] played together as juniors quite a bit. We’ve never lost together, won every tournament.”
Eubanks said he would compete in assorted Futures tournaments and qualifiers upcoming this summer in order to prepare for the BB&T Atlanta Open.
The rising Tech junior from Atlanta was named ACC Player of the Year this spring and was one of 14 automatic qualifiers into the NCAA Singles Championship, becoming the first Tech player to participate in singles in multiple years since Juan Spir in 2012 and 2013. Eubanks compiled a 34-7 record, including an 11-1 mark in ACC play, from his No. 1 singles position. Eubanks rose as high as No. 6 during the spring in the ITA Singles Rankings all season, finishing at No. 8. He also teamed with Tech junior Carlos Benito to compile a 16-3 record in doubles and achieve a national ranking of No. 36.
Former Tech All-American Juan Spir, played in the main doubles draw last year, and teamed with Tech All-American Kevin King played in the main doubles draw in 2013. King teamed with former Georgia player Drake Bernstein in 2011, and also earned a spot in the singles qualifying draw in 2012.
ABOUT GEORGIA TECH MEN’S TENNIS
Georgia Tech’s men’s tennis team is in its 18th year under head coach Kenny Thorne. The Yellow Jackets have played in the NCAA Championship 16 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.
