Men's Tennis Opens Play in Atlanta
ATLANTA, Ga. – The University of Miami men’s tennis team opened up play this weekend at the Georgia Tech Fall Invitational held at the Ken Byers Tennis Complex in Atlanta.
In his first match of the season, junior Nile Clark defeated Vanderbilt’s Vikram Chari, 6-4, 6-1, to advance to the quarterfinals against [2-seed] Brandon Laubser of Auburn, tomorrow.
Sophomore Dane Dunlap opened up his collegiate career teaming up with Niclas Genovese in the Division III doubles bracket. The duo challenged Vanderbilt’s Chari and Alex Ross to a hard fought match, with the Hurricanes coming up short 8-6.
“It was great to see Clark and Dunlap compete. Both of those guys have been battling injuries, so it’s great to have them out there playing,” head coach Aljosa Piric said. “Dane was out of all last season, with a back injury, so it is great to see him gaining strength.”
Along with Clark, in the Division III singles bracket, Kevin Bondar faced off against [1-seed] Tate Allwardt of Georgia Tech, falling, 6-2, 7-5. Meanwhile, Genovese opened the weekend with a tough loss to Vanderbilt’s Mario Paccini, 6-3, 6-2.
In doubles play, Bondar and Clark fell, 8-3, in the opening round against Trevor Croyder and Clarke Wilson of Furman.
“Collectively we need to get tougher and we need to play with more purpose and resilience,” Aljosa explained. “All of our guys will have another round of matches and I am certainly expecting them to be ready to battle.”
Saturday, at 9 a.m., Bondar and Clark will take on Tennessee’s Sunay Bhat and Furman’s Jake Bhangdia in the doubles consolation semifinals. Simultaneously, Dunlap and Genovese will match up against Tennessee’s Srdjan Jakovljevic and Luca Wiedenmann.
In the singles consolation bracket, Bondar will take on Jake Bhangdia of Furman while Genovese will battle Tennessee’s Preston Touliatos at 1 p.m.
The tournament features three draws. Each player will play four singles matches and three doubles matches. On Saturday, there will be one round of doubles and two rounds of singles. On Sunday, play will conclude with one round of doubles and one round of singles.
To keep up to date with the men’s tennis team, follow the squad on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @CanesMensTennis.
FRIDAY RESULTS
Division III Singles (Round of 16)
[1-seed] Tate Allwardt (Georgia Tech) def. Kevin Bondar (Miami), 6-2, 7-5
Mario Paccini (Vanderbilt) def. Niclas Genovese (Miami), 6-3, 6-2
Nile Clark (Miami) def. Vikram Chari (Vanderbilt), 6-4, 6-1
Division III Doubles (Quarterfinals)
Vikram Chari/Alex Ross (Vanderbilt) def. Niclas Genovese/Dane Dunlap (Miami), 8-6
Trevor Croyder/Clarke Wilson (Furman) def. Kevin Bondar/Nile Clark (Miami), 8-3
SATURDAY SCHEDULE
Division III Singles (Quarterfinals)
10 a.m. – Nile Clark (Miami) vs. [2-seed] Brandon Laubser (Auburn)
Division III Singles Consolation (Quarterfinals)
1 p.m. – Kevin Bondar (Miami) vs. Jake Bhangdia (Furman)
1 p.m. – Nicla
s Genovese (Miami) vs. Preston Touliatos (Tennessee)
Division III Doubles Consolation (Semifinals)
9 a.m. – Kevin Bondar/Nile Clark (Miami) vs. Jake Bhangdia (Furman) and Sunay Bhat (Tennessee)
9 a.m. – Niclas Genovese/Dane Dunlap (Miami) vs. Srdjan Jakovljevic/Luca Wiedenmann (Tennessee)
