Feb. 8, 2012
ATLANTA – Juan Spir, Eduardo Segura and Kevin King won their singles matches in straight sets to clinch the match early, and Georgia Tech swept all three doubles matches to down Georgia State, 6-1, Wednesday afternoon at the Bill Moore Tennis Center.
Tech improved to 3-4 with the win and will host William & Mary Thursday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. The Panthers fell to 6-5.
The Yellow Jackets were able to capture the doubles point without relying on King and Spir, their No. 1 team. Segura and Dusan Miljevic got by Michael Vallejo and Thomas Cook, 8-4, at No. 3, and Juan Melian and Vikram Hundal clinched the point with an 8-3 win over Juan Pablo Gutierrez and Lucas Santana at No. 2. Meanwhile, King and Spir fell behind, 5-7, in their match with Victor Valente and Matias Hatem. They rallied to tie the match, 8-8, surviving two match points in the process, and won in a tiebreaker, improving their record to 6-0 this spring, 11-2 overall.
“It was nice seeing our No. 2 and 3 doubles teams step up and get the point for us. It was exactly what our team needed,” said head coach Kenny Thorne.
Spir, a junior from Medellin, Colombia, rallied from a 3-0 hole in his second set of singles, defeating Cook, 6-3, 6-4, at No. 2. Segura, a freshman from Madrid, Spain, made quick work of Gutierrez at No. 5 with a 6-2, 6-1 victory.
“Eddie played a complete match today over a very good player. Juan and Kevin continued to play solidly for us. They’re a good base for us at 1 and 2,” added Thorne.
King, a senior from Peachtree City, Ga., captured the deciding point for Tech at No. 1, winning 6-1, 7-6 (7-3) after falling behind, 5-6 in the second set. He improved to 6-1 this spring, 20-4 overall this year.
Georgia State scratched at No. 4 when Hatem eased past Milevic, 7-5, 6-0. Tech got its fifth point from Melian, 6-1, 6-4, over Ismael Lahlou. Freshman Sebastian Lopez earned a straight-set win at No. 6 in his collegiate debut for Tech to finish off the Panthers.
“Sebastian was down two breaks, 4-1, in his first set as a collegian, and came back to win,” said Thorne. “That showed how mentally tough he is, and what a fighter he is. That was a big boost to our team.”
#22 Georgia Tech 6, Georgia State 1
Tennis Match Results
Feb 08, 2012 at Atlanta, Ga.
Singles competition
1. #9 Kevin King (GT) def. Victor Valente (GSU) 6-1, 7-6 (7-3)
2. Juan Spir (GT) def. Thomas Cook (GSU) 6-3, 6-4
3. Juan Melian (GT) def. Ismael Lahlou (GSU) 6-1, 6-4
4. Matias Hatem (GSU) def. Dusan Miljevic (GT) 7-5, 6-0
5. Eduardo Segura (GT) def. Juan Pablo Gutierrez (GSU) 6-2, 6-1
6. Sebastian Lopez (GT) def. Lucas Santana (GSU) 7-5, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. #2 Kevin King/Juan Spir (GT) def. Victor Valente/Matias Hatem (GSU) 9-8 (7-3)
2. Juan Melian/Vikram Hundal (GT) def. Juan Pablo Gutierrez/Lucas Santana (GSU) 8-3
3. Eduardo Segura/Dusan Miljevic (GT) def. Michael Vallejo/Thomas Cook (GSU) 8-4
Match Notes:
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (2,5,1,4,3,6)
