April 20, 2006
Sophomore Jordan Delass won at No. 2 singles and No. 3 doubles, but it was not enough as the No. 26 Georgia Tech men’s tennis team fell by a 4-3 score to No. 56 Virginia Tech in the first round of the ACC Tournament. With the win, the Hokies improve to 13-14 on the season while the Yellow Jackets fall to 11-9.
The Jackets took the early lead 1-0 taking the doubles point by winning at No. 3 and No. 2 doubles. Georgia Tech’s Delass and George Gvelesiani grabbed the first match with an 8-5 win over Albert Larregola and Nicholas Delgado at No. 3. The Jackets then claimed the point as the team of Scott Blackmon and Zachary Rath defeated Arvid Puranen and Alexei Sergeev at No. 2, 8-4. The match between David North and Marko Rajevac and Christian Guevara and Brent Wilkins at No. 1 was tied at 7-7 before being suspended once the Yellow Jackets won the point.
Tech then took a 2-0 lead as Delass won at No. 2 singles over Sergeev in straight sets, 6-2, 6-0. The Hokies then got on the board with a win from David Rosenfeld at No. 4 over Rath, 7-4, 6-2. The Jackets lead then became 3-1 when North held on to win at No. 3 over Larregola, 6-1, 7-5. Virginia Tech then trailed 2-3 after a win at No. 5 singles once Delgado defeated Blackmon, 6-4, 6-3.
After dropping the first two sets in the final two matches, the Yellow Jackets won second sets to force the third. However, Virgina Tech held on in the final two matches, securing wins at No. 1 and No. 6 to earn the final two points and win the match. Georgia Tech’s Rajevac fell at No. 1 to No. 40 Puranen, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 while Gvelesinai was defeated by Corace, 6-1, 6-7, 6-3.
The Yellow Jackets will return to Atlanta and await the announcement of the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship Bracket, released May 3.
Tennis Match ResultsVirginia Tech vs Georgia TechApr 20, 2006 at Cary, NC
#56 Virginia Tech 4, #27 Georgia Tech 3
Singles competition 1. #40 Arvid Puranen (VT) def. Marko Rajevac (GT) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 2. Jordan Delass (GT) def. Alexei Sergeev (VT) 6-2, 6-0 3. David North (GT) def. Albert Larregola (VT) 6-1, 7-5 4. David Rosenfeld (VT) def. Zachary Rath (GT) 7-5, 6-2 5. Nicolas Delgado (VT) def. Scott Blackmon (GT) 6-4, 6-3 6. Brandon Corace (VT) def. George Gvelesiani (GT) 6-1, 6-7 (4-7), 6-3
Doubles competition 1. David North/Marko Rajevac (GT) vs. Christian Guevara/Brent Wilkins (VT) 7-7, unfinished 2. Zachary Rath/Scott Blackmon (GT) def. Arvid Puranen/Alexei Sergeev (VT) 8-4 3. Jordan Delass/George Gvelesiani (GT) def. Albert Larregola/Nicolas Delgado (VT) 8-5
Match Notes: Virginia Tech 13-14, 3-8 ACC; National ranking #56 Georgia Tech 11-9, 5-6 ACC; National ranking #27 Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (2,4,3,5,1,6)
