March 27, 2016
THE FLATS – Georgia Tech won four singles matches, with the clinching point coming in a tense tiebreaker win by freshman Andrew Li, as the 32nd-ranked Yellow Jackets downed No. 46 Notre Dame, 5-2, in Atlantic Coast Conference men’s tennis Sunday afternoon at the Ken Byers Tennis Complex.
Tech improved to 5-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, with five of the seven matches having been played on the road, and 12-5 overall. The Yellow Jackets, 7-0 at home this spring, host Miami and Boston College at the Ken Byers Tennis Complex. The Fighting Irish fell to 10-10 overall, 4-4 in the ACC.
After handily winning the doubles point, All-American Chris Eubanks and senior Nathan Rakitt kept the momentum in the Jackets’ favor with quick straight-set wins on courts 1 and 6. Eubanks, ranked 11th in the nation, earned his ninth victory over a ranked opponent with a 6-1, 6-2 triumph against No. 33 Quentin Monaghan at the No. 1 position. Rakitt made it 3-1 Tech by defeating Kenneth Sabacinski, 6-2, 6-4, on court 6.
While Carlos Benito and Daniel Yun battled to third sets in their matches on courts 2 and 4, Li had won his first set and rallied to force a tiebreaker in his second set against Grayson Broadus on court 5. The Tech freshman bolted to a 5-3 lead but watched Broadus come back and move ahead, 7-6. Li won the next three points to win the tiebreaker, 9-7, and the match, 6-4, 7-6, for the Yellow Jackets’ clinching point.
Benito went on to win finish a three-set win over Eddy Covalschi, while Yun lost a tiebreaker in his third set with Alex Lawson.
The Jackets had little trouble capturing the doubles point, with 54th-ranked Casey and Michael Kay knocking off their second straight top-15 opponent, 6-2, over No. 14 Lawson and Monaghan in court 1, and Rakitt and Li taking care of Covalschi and Sabacinski by the same score.
HEAD COACH Kenny Thorne SAYS – “We did a great job in doubles. Notre Dame is a very good doubles team. The Kays did an incredible job, played very well. That was huge for this team. Chris kept our foot on the accelerator with his win over a guy who beat him last year, and that coming off a loss in his last match. Daniel was able to hang in there and even his match, which kept the momentum for us and was a big key so Drew could finish off his match in straight sets. I’m very pleased with Nathan, he has been a rock for us at No. 6.”
NOTABLE – Thunder showers in the area forced the match indoors … Eubanks is 15-2 this spring, his only losses to players ranked No. 20 and No. 12, and is 9-5 vs. ranked players in 2015-16 … Benito has won five of his last six matches and improved to 10-7 … Rakitt won his eighth straight decision, is 8-0 playing in the sixth position and 9-2 this spring … Li has won two of his last three matches and improved to 8-7 this spring … Tech won the doubles point for the 13th time in 17 matches … The Kay brothers, ranked 54th in the nation, are 2-0 since moving back into the No. 1 position, 7-4 in dual matches and a team-best 15-8 for the year … Rakitt and Li snapped a personal four-match skid and improved to 9-5.
#32 Georgia Tech 5, #46 Notre Dame 2
March 27, 2016 at Atlanta, Ga. (Ken Byers Tennis Complex)
Singles competition
1. #11 Christopher Eubanks (GT) def. #33 Quentin Monaghan (ND) 6-1, 6-2
2. Carlos Benito (GT) def. Eddy Covalschi (ND) 7-5, 4-6, 6-4
3. Josh Hagar (ND) def. Cole Fiegel (GT) 6-1, 6-2
4. Alex Lawson (ND) def. Daniel Yun (GT) 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-2)
5. Andrew Li (GT) def. Grayson Broadus (ND) 6-4, 7-6 (9-7)
6. Nathan Rakitt (GT) def. Kenneth Sabacinski (ND) 6-2, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. #54 Casey Kay/Michael Kay (GT) def. #14 Alex Lawson/Quentin Monaghan (ND) 6-2
2. Carlos Benito/Christopher Eubanks (GT) vs. Grayson Broadus/Josh Hagar (ND) 5-3, unfinished
3. Nathan Rakitt/Andrew Li (GT) def. Eddy Covalschi/Kenneth Sabacinski (ND) 6-2
Match Notes
Notre Dame 10-10, 4-4 ACC; National ranking #46
Georgia Tech 12-5, 5-2 ACC; National ranking #32
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (1,3,6,5,2,4)
Match played indoors due to rain and thunder showers
T-2:21 A-240
