University of Georgia Athletics
Reinberg Keeps Grinding, Improving
September 24, 2016 | Men's Tennis
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
In a three-set match Saturday that had a bit of everything, Emil Reinberg saw something on match point that he definitely hadn't anticipated.
Leading 6-5 in the tiebreaker and serving to Tennessee Tech's Eduardo Mena in the ad court, the Georgia sophomore hit a boomer into the body. Apparently unable to move left or right for a traditional shot, Mena opted for a between-the-legs forehand return.
"That threw me off a little," Reinberg said.
But not enough to keep him from closing out the point and the match — 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 7-6 (7-5) — and earning himself a spot in Sunday's quarterfinals of the 49th Southern Intercollegiate Championships at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.
It was the third win of the tournament for Reinberg and the continuation of what Georgia coach Manuel Diaz described as "a steady, fast rise." Reinberg, who went in and out of Georgia's very deep singles lineup last season, went 10-3 in dual matches (8-0 at No. 6 singles) and was 20-10 overall. He got better and better as his freshman year progressed, ending his season without a loss in his final nine matches.
"He's brilliant at times and at times he makes it a little bit more difficult for himself than it should be, but I'm really proud of his progress," Diaz said, adding that Reinberg could challenge for a spot in the top three of Georgia's lineup this spring.
Reinberg started his Georgia career last September in the Southern Intercollegiate, losing in the first round. It has been a much different event this time around.
In Georgia's season-opening event earlier this month in Puerto Rico, Reinberg won all three of his matches. On Friday, Reinberg opened his second Southern Intercollegiate appearance with a first-round win over Virginia Tech's Jai Corbett — by the odd score of 6-1, 1-6, 6-1 — and followed that with a hard-fought 7-6, 6-4 win over Juan Morino of Arkansas.
Then came Saturday, when Reinberg got down a break and trailed 5-2 in the first set before rallying. He actually won four straight games and led 6-5, with three set points, before closing out the set in the tiebreaker with a backhand cross-court winner.
Mean broke Reinberg twice to take the second set, but Reinberg got off to a fast start in the third and led 3-0. But it wasn't going to be that simple, especially not with Reinberg frequently changing rackets in search of one with the right tension in the strings.
By the time Reinberg led 5-4 in the third there were five rackets strewn around his bench and he found one more in his bag.
"I don't know why, they just all started getting so loose," he said. "I would barely hit the ball and it would just fly. It started just messing with my head. Thankfully I had six rackets."
The last one did the job. At 5-5 in the tie-breaker, Reinberg produced a forehand winner up the line to give him a match point. And then came a big serve, Mena's funky return and a spot in the quarterfinals.
Along with his improvement last season, Reinberg credited his play this summer in lower-level pro events for the boost in confidence he's playing with now. He and freshman Nathan Ponwith won a doubles tournament and Reinberg went deep in the singles of another tournament.
"Over the summer I gained a lot of confidence in myself, both physically and mentally," he said. "I played a lot of long, hot matches where it was brutal and staying confident and keeping my composure really helped me. Also, just believing even when I'm down."
Georgia has two in the final eight of the Division I singles draw, as do Oklahoma and Arkansas. Up next for Reinberg is No. 4 seed Elliott Orkin of Florida, a first-team All-SEC player last season, who beat Ponwith in three sets Saturday.
Also still in the singles for Georgia is two-time defending Southern Intercollegiate champion, and the No. 2 seed, Wayne Montgomery. The junior took the court against Florida's Maxx Lipman well after Reinberg's match began and was off it well before Reinberg's finished, cruising to a 6-0, 6-1 win.
Reinberg and Montgomery are on opposite sides of the draw and would only meet if both reached Monday's final.
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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