University of Georgia Athletics
University of Georgia
Samford
Georgia Opens NCAA Tourney, Beats Samford 4-0
May 13, 2011 | Men's Tennis
May 13, 2011
Complete Results | Tournament Central (1st & 2nd Round Coverage)
ATHENS --- The sixth-ranked Georgia men's tennis team opened the NCAA Tournament with a 4-0 win over Samford on Friday at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. The Bulldogs will face Auburn Saturday at 3 p.m. for a berth in the NCAA Championships to be held May 20-24 in Palo Alto, Calif.
With a win Saturday, sixth-seeded Georgia will advance to the Round of 16 for the eighth straight year.
Drake Bernstein furnished the clincher for the Bulldogs (21-5) just hours before the senior was scheduled to receive his degree in UGA's Spring Commencement at Sanford Stadium.
"I thought we played well," said Georgia head coach Manuel Diaz. "I was impressed with Samford. They have a very good team. It was probably as challenging a first round match as we've had in recent memory. Our guys responded well. I think we were a little rusty in a couple of spots in singles, but we played well in doubles. We'll be ready to play again tomorrow."
Georgia rolled in the doubles point to take a 1-0 lead. First at No. 2, the 88th-ranked team of Sadio Doumbia and Ignacio Taboada beat Zac Dunkle and Alexander Sajonz 8-2, then Wil Spencer and Bernstein clinched the point at No. 3 with an 8-4 win over Carson Kadi and Fernando Costa. With their win at No. 3, Spencer and Bernstein are now tied for the team lead with 25 doubles wins, while Doumbia and Taboada notched their 24th win of the season.
Hernus Pieters extended the lead to 2-0 in singles as he cruised past Sajonz, 6-0, 6-0 a No. 6, then No. 18 Spencer downed Kadi, 6-2, 6-1 at No. 1. Bernstein followed with his fifth clincher of the season for the Bulldogs at No. 4, 6-2, 6-3 over Oliver Reynolds.
"It's always good to start the tournament off with a 4-0 win," Bernstein said. "We probably could have played a little better, but hopefully we'll be ready to go tomorrow against Auburn."
Matches at Nos. 2, 3 and 5 were suspended with Georgia winning the first set on two of the courts.
Three matches will be played at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex on Saturday beginning with a matchup between the Alabama women and Utah at 9 a.m. The Georgia women will face Marist at noon, followed by the Georgia men against Auburn.
Auburn defeated UNC Wilmington 4-1 earlier Friday. Georgia defeated the Tigers 4-0 in the SEC opener for both teams on March 4.
Samford ends its season at 19-7.
#6 GEORGIA (21-5) def. SAMFORD (19-7), 4-0
Doubles (Order of finish: 2,3)
1. #6 Javier Garrapiz/Hernus Pieters (GEORGIA) vs. Oliver Reynolds/Carl Abalos (SAMFORD), 6-3, unf.
2. #88 Sadio Doumbia/Ignacio Taboada (GEORGIA) def. Zac Dunkle/Alex Sajonz (SAMFORD), 8-2
3. Wil Spencer/Drake Bernstein (GEORGIA) def. Carson Kadi/Fernando Costa (SAMFORD), 8-4
Singles (Order of finish: 6,1,4*)
1. #18 Wil Spencer (GEORGIA) def. Carson Kadi (SAMFORD), 6-2, 6-1
2. #32 Javier Garrapiz (GEORGIA) vs. Zac Dunkle (SAMFORD), 7-5, 1-1, unf.
3. #51 Sadio Doumbia (GEORGIA) vs. Carl Abalos (SAMFORD), 6-3, 2-2, unf.
4. Drake Bernstein (GEORGIA) def. Oliver Reynolds (SAMFORD), 6-2, 6-3*
5. Ignacio Taboada (GEORGIA) vs. Fernando Costa (SAMFORD), 6-6, unf.
6. Hernus Pieters (GEORGIA) def. Alex Sajonz (SAMFORD), 6-0, 6-0
