May 14, 2006
Strahinja Bobusic won at No. 3 doubles and at No. 6 singles to lead the No. 1 Georgia men’s tennis team to a 4-0 win over No. 30 Georgia Tech in the second round of the NCAA Championships.
With the win, Georgia improves to 27-0 while the Yellow Jackets’ season ends with a 12-10 record.
The Bulldogs advance to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Championships which will begin next week in Palo Alto, Calif.
“I thought that our guys fought hard today,” said head coach Kenny Thorne. “Georgia came out really strong in doubles and set the tone for the match, especially in the first five games. I thought that we hung in there in singles, but in the end, Georgia was just too much. They have an excellent team from top to bottom and should do well in this tournament.”
The Bulldogs grabbed the doubles points with wins at the No. 3 and No. 2 positions. Georgia’s 50th-ranked duo of Bobusic and Colin Purcell won the first match with a 8-3 defeat of Tech’s team of Jordan Delass and George Gvelesiani at No. 3. Georgia then earned the point when the 19th ranked tandem of Luis Flores and Matic Omerzel posted a 8-4 victory over the Jackets’ Scott Blackmon and Zachary Rath at the No. 2 position. In the match at No. 1 doubles between No. 9 John Isner and Antonio Ruiz and No. 52 Marko Rajevac and David North, the teams were on serve at 7-6 when play was suspended.
Georgia carried its momentum into singles play, winning first sets in four of the six singles matches. Georgia took a 2-0 lead when Purcell defeated Blackmon at No. 5 singles, 6-0, 6-3. The Bulldogs increased their lead to 3-0 as No. 2 Isner won at No. 1 singles over Rajevac, 7-5, 6-4. Seconds later No. 50 Bobusic clinched the match for Georgia with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Gvelesiani to seal the match for Georgia.
In the other matches, North took the first set over Ruiz, 6-4, and was leading in the second set, 3-1, at No. 3 singles while Rath had taken the first set in his contest against No. 64 Omerzel, 7-6 (2) and was tied at 3-3 at No. 4 singles while Delass had dropped the first set against No. 19 Flores, 6-4, and was tied at 4-4 in the second when the match was suspended.
Tennis Match ResultsGeorgia Tech vs GeorgiaNCAA Second Round ChampionshipMay 14, 2006 at Athens, Ga.Dan McGill Tennis Center
#1 Georgia 4, #30 Georgia Tech 0
Singles competition 1. #2 John Isner (UGA) def. Marko Rajevac (GT) 7-5, 6-4 2. #19 Luis Flores (UGA) vs. Jordan Delass (GT) 6-4, 4-4, unfinished 3. David North (GT) def. Antonio Ruiz (UGA) 6-4, 3-1, unfinished 4. #64 Matic Omerzel (UGA) vs. Zachary Rath (GT) 6-7 (2-7), 3-3, unfinished 5. Colin Purcell (UGA) def. Scott Blackmon (GT) 6-0, 6-3 6. #50 Strahinja Bobusic (UGA) def. George Gvelesiani (GT) 6-3, 6-4
Doubles competition 1. #9 John Isner/Antonio Ruiz (UGA) vs. #52 Marko Rajevac/David North (GT) 7-6, unfinished 2. #19 Luis Flores/Matic Omerzel (UGA) def. Scott Blackmon/Zachary Rath (GT) 8-4 3. #50 Strahinja Bobusic/Colin Purcell (UGA) def. Jordan Delass/George Gvelesiani (GT) 8-3
Match Notes: Georgia Tech 12-10; National ranking #30 Georgia 27-0; National ranking #1 Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (5,1,6)
