March 6, 2004
Joao Menano won a thrilling three set match at No. 5 singles to clinch the match for the Georgia Tech men’s tennis team, upsetting No. 27 Minnesota by a 4-3 margin Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Yellow Jackets improve to 8-3 while the Gophers fall to 3-4.
The Yellow Jackets opened the match winning the doubles point as Tech won at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. West Nott and Jason Pieters teamed to win the first match over Dusan Tobak and Alex Zharinov, 8-3 while Menano and Zachary Rath combined to defeat Chris Wettengel and Andres Osorio, 8-5. The fifteenth ranked duo of Scott Schnugg and Marko Rajevac fell to Clay Estes and Avery Ticer at No. 1 doubles, 8-5.
The Gophers then tied the match at 1-1 as Zharinov defeated Schnugg at No. 1 singles in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6 (5). The Jackets moved ahead, 2-1, as Nott beat Tyser, 6-3, 6-3. Again, the Gophers climbed back to even the match as Brian Lipinski was victorious over Rajevac, 6-3, 6-1. Minnesota then took a 3-2 lead as Osorio won at No. 4 over Rath, 6-1, 6-4. The Jackets tied the match at 3-3 as Pieters battled to upset No. 59 Wettengel, 4-6, 6-1, 6-3, setting up the dramatic win for Menano.
“This was a tough, tough, win for us today and I couldn’t be prouder of our team,” said head coach Kenny Thorne. “In every match, our guys battled and hung in there and it is nice to come away with a win over a very good Minnesota team. Winning the doubles point today was key because it gave us some momentum heading into singles and it was great today to see some three set matches go our way. Hopefully our team can build on this as we head to play home next week.”
The Yellow Jackets will return to action Wednesday when they face No. 38 Clemson at 2:30 p.m. at the Bill Moore Tennis Center in Atlanta, Ga.
#55 Georgia Tech 4, #27 Minnesota 3
Doubles 1. Clay Estes/Avery Ticer (UM) def. #15 Schnagg/Rajevac (GT) 8-5 2. Nott/Pieters (GT) def. Dusan Tabak/Alex Zharinov (UM), 8-3 *3. Rath/Menano (GT) def. Chris Wettengel/Andres Osorio (UM) 8-5
Singles 1. Zharinov (UM) def. Schnugg (GT) 6-3, 7-6 (5) 2. Pieters (GT) def. #59 Wettengel (UM), 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 3. Nott (GT) def. Tyser (UM) 6-3, 6-3 4. Osorio (UM) def. Rath (GT) 6-1, 6-4 **5. Menano (GT) def. Ester (UM) 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 6. Lipinski (UM) def. Rajevac (GT) 6-3, 6-1 * Clinched doubles point ** Clinched match
