Croyder Clinches Bulldogs Win Over A&M

Thursday, March 9

Athens, Ga.

2:30 p.m.

University of Georgia

Texas A&M

March 09, 2023 | Men's Tennis

Box Score vs. Texas A&M

ATHENS, Ga. — With a deft forehand volley winner in the third set of his match at No. 4 singles, fifth-year senior Blake Croyder clinched No. 7 Georgia's win over Texas A&M on Thursday afternoon at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

The Bulldogs had led the Aggies 3-1 for about 45 minutes, with the remaining singles matches in third sets, when Croyder broke serve at 4-all in the third and then, serving at 40-15 against A&M's Guido Marson, Croyder came to the net during a long rally and clinched the win, 4-1, with a clever crosscourt volley for a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 victory.

"It's definitely just a great feeling no matter what," Croyder said. "Clinching, no matter what the score is, no matter how tight it is, if it's easy, close, clinching is a good feeling no matter what."

Georgia (9-5, 3-0 SEC) clinched the victory at 4-1 but the remaining two matches were played to completion. The Bulldogs and Texas A&M (6-7, 1-2) each picked up a win, making the final score 5-2.

A&M struck first in the doubles, at the No. 1 spot, with the team of Noah Schachter and Trey Hildebrand getting up a break of serve early and beating Georgia's No. 11-ranked team of Ethan Quinn and Trent Bryde, 6-2. The other two matches were neck-and-neck, with both tied at 5-5 at one point. The Aggies secured the doubles point at No. 3, where Raphel Perot and Giulio Perego held serve for a 6-5 lead against Georgia's Britton Johnston and Croyder, and then got a break in the next game to earn the win, 7-5.

In singles play, Georgia took the opening set in four of the six matches. Georgia fifth-year player Philip Henning, No. 15 in the latest ITA singles rankings, tied the overall match at 1-1 with his victory at No. 2, where he took down the No. 66-ranked Perot, 6-1, 7-5.

A couple of minutes later, the No. 2-ranked Quinn, a redshirt freshman, put the Bulldogs ahead with a 6-4, 6-2 win at No. 1 singles over A&M's No., 31-ranked Schacter. Moments later, at the No. 6 spot, sophomore Miguel Perez Peña pushed Georgia's advantage to 3-1 by wrapping up a 6-2, 6-4 win over Luke Casper.

The next point for either team took a while to reach as the three remaining matches headed into third sets, with the Bulldogs just needing one more win to secure the victory. Eventually, it was Croyder that pulled out the win. At 4-all in the third set against Marson, Croyder fought his way to a break of serve and then closed out the victory with a strong service game.

"I think I stayed true to my game plan; just tried to play patiently aggressive and build my points up a little more instead of going for something so early," Croyder. "I was trying to make my way to the net and trying to finish off points there."

Bryde was in the third set against Giulio Perego at No. 3, while Teodor Giusca, ranked No. 101, was in the third set against A&M's Pierce Rollins, ranked No. 100. Both matches were tied 4-all in the third. Bryde closed out a 3-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4 win over Perego, making it 5-1, and then Rollins held off Giusca, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.

"We played very well. The most impressive thing about today's performance was that we responded after dropping that doubles point," Georgia coach Manuel Diaz said. "Texas A&M played very well, we've been playing very well in doubles, but today they were a little bit better than us. But we came out in singles and everybody was locked in. Overall, just a great team performance coming back from a 0-1 deficit. We were very physical today.

"We've got a big test on Saturday when Vanderbilt will come here. Every match in the SEC is a huge challenge and we're looking forward to stepping up to the task."

The Bulldogs will be back at the Magill on Saturday when they host the Commodores at 1 p.m. Georgia wraps up its three-match homestand on March 18, against No. 20 Tennessee.

You can keep up with all the latest news and information on the Bulldogs on georgiadogs.com, or by following the team on Twitter (@UGATennis) and Instagram (@ugatennis).

Results

No. 7 Georgia 5, Texas A&M 2

Doubles

1. #78 Noah Schachter/Trey Hildebrand (A&M) def. #11 Ethan Quinn/Trent Bryde (UGA), 6-2

2. Teodor Giusca/Philip Henning (UGA) vs Pierce Rollins/Kenner Taylor (A&M), 5-5 (unfinished)

3. Raphel Perot/Giulio Perego (A&M) def. Britton Johnston/Blake Croyder (UGA), 7-5

Singles

1. #2 Ethan Quinn (UGA) vs. #31 Noah Schachter (A&M) -- 6-4, 3-0

2. #15 Philip Henning (UGA) vs. #66 Raphel Perot (A&M) -- 6-1, 4-4

3. Trent Bryde (UGA) def. Giulio Perego (A&M), 3-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4

4. #90 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Guido Marson (A&M), 6-4, 4-6, 6-4

5. #100 Pierce Rollins (A&M) def. #101 Teodor Giusca (UGA), 6-4, 4-6, 6-4