Feb. 12, 2016
THE FLATS – Georgia Tech men’s tennis team earned a big win over No. 56 Auburn on Friday by a score of 6-1 at the Ken Byers Tennis Complex. The Jackets improved to 4-3 in dual matches on the season with the win.
The match began with Auburn’s doubles pairing of No. 60 Marko Krickovic and Edward Nguyen prevailing over No. 24 Michael and Casey Kay, but Tech was able to take the other two doubles matches on tiebreakers to jump out to an early 1-0 lead.
“I felt like we hung in there in doubles very well,” head coach Kenny Thorne said. “We lost the toss on courts two and three, so we were always a game behind but not actually down a break. We were on serve, but it seemed like we were trying to catch up every game. We had a tough one on court one in doubles – they got on top of us. But they pushed us mentally in the doubles, and we responded. That’s what we’ve been asking them to do. We got a good doubles point and got the momentum, and we’ve done that in a couple of matches. We did that against Georgia and didn’t keep the momentum, but today we kept it.”
In singles, the Jackets were able to get three two-set wins from Andrew Li, Michael Kay and Cole Fiegel, with Fiegel’s win clinching the match for Tech. No. 9 Christopher Eubanks was then able to defeat No. 84 Marko Krickovic in a match in which the third set was played as a tiebreaker, winning by a score of 5-7, 6-4, 1-0 (10-5) to add an exclamation point for the Jackets.
“We got through a lot of first sets in singles,” said Thorne. “The middle-to-lower part of the lineup brought it through for us. Three through five got the clinch for us. That’s what we’ve been needing. We’ve needed different people to step up. We’ve got a lot of good players, and I’m looking forward to this carrying us through and getting some really good momentum from it.”
The Jackets will continue action this Sunday at home, as they will face Georgia State at 12 p.m. and Mercer at 5:30 p.m.
Singles competition
1. #9 Christopher Eubanks (GT) def. #84 Marko Krickovic (AU) 5-7, 6-4, 1-0 (10-5)
2. Maxime Hinnisdaels (AU) def. Carlos Benito (GT) 2-6, 6-2, 6-3
3. Andrew Li (GT) def. Dante Saleh (AU) 6-1, 6-2
4. Michael Kay (GT) def. Conner Huertas (AU) 6-4, 6-4
5. Cole Fiegel (GT) def. Brandon Laubser (AU) 7-5, 6-4
6. Nathan Rakitt (GT) def. Olle Thestrup (AU) 3-6, 6-1, 7-6 (8-6)
Doubles competition
1. #60 Marko Krickovic/Edward Nguyen (AU) def. #24 Michael Kay/Casey Kay (GT) 6-3
2. Christopher Eubanks/Carlos Benito (GT) def. Conner Huertas/Brandon Laubser (AU) 7-6 (7-1)
3. Nathan Rakitt/Andrew Li (GT) def. Maxime Hinnisdaels/Olle Thestrup (AU) 7-6 (7-4)
Match Notes:
Auburn 4-2; National ranking #56
Georgia Tech 4-3; National ranking #44
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (3,4,5,1,2,6)
T-2:45 A-2000
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 15 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.
