Friday, February 3
Chattanooga, Tenn.
6:00 p.m.
Chattanooga
4
vs
2
Tennessee Tech
Senior Lucas Plesky and freshman Simon Bustamante won at No. 1 doubles tonight.
Photo by: Dale Rutemeyer
Mocs Down Defending OVC Champs Tennessee Tech 4-2
2/3/2017 10:13:00 PM | Men's Tennis
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men's tennis team picked up its first win of the season in a big way tonight. The Mocs scored a 4-2 victory over Tennessee Tech, the defending Ohio Valley Conference Champions.
"This was a huge win for us," stated head coach Carlos Garcia. "It is tough to describe the feeling after having such a tough start to the season. I am glad to see the guys experience some success after all of the hard work they have put in."
Chattanooga jumped out early, taking the first two doubles matches for a 1-0 lead. Senior Lucas Plesky and freshman Simon Bustamante opened with a 6-4 win over Eduardo Mena and Alberto Esteban at No. 1. Senior Derrick Brown and junior Michael Birnbaum clinched the point with their 7-5 win over Jorge Alfonzo and Guillermo Nicolas at No. 3.
Singles started out even with both teams taking three first sets. Mena tied the score with a (6-2, 6-1) win over Plesky at No. 1. Freshman Max Grobbelaar quickly responded with a (6-0, 6-1) win over Carlos Taejas at No. 6.
The Mocs went up 3-1 when sophomore Pablo Llebeili defeated Marc Mila (7-5, 6-2) at No. 4. UTC needed one more win on the night to clinch the match, but the last three were all tight.
Freshman Niklas Gerdes lost his first set to Esteban 6-1 at No. 2. He battled back to take the second frame 6-1. Leading 4-2 in the third, he broke Esteban again to take a 5-2 advantage. He then served out for the win and the team victory.
"Nik is a very mature freshman," added Garcia. "He beat a very good senior when we really needed him to step up. He has already had some big wins and I expect him to keep improving as the season progresses."
TTU won at No. 3 and the No. 5 match did not finish. Chattanooga improved to 1-4 on the year while the Golden Eagles dropped to 1-1.
Next up for the Mocs is a Sunday match against former Southern Conference foe Georgia Southern (1-2). First serve is set for 10:00 a.m. (E.S.T.) at the Racquet Club in Hixson. Find a link for live scoring on the men's tennis schedule page on GoMocs.com.
Chattanooga 4, Tennessee Tech 2
Feb 03, 2017 at Chattanooga, Tenn. (Racquet Club)
Doubles competition
1. Lucas Plesky/Simon Bustamante (UTC) def. MENA, Eduardo/ESTEBAN, Alberto (TTU) 6-4
2. BERNARDES, Marcos/TAJES, Carlos (TTU) vs. Niklas Gerdes/Nic Wilson (UTC) no result
3. Michael Birnbaum/Derrick Brown (UTC) def. ALFONZO, Jorge/NICOLAS, Guillermo (TTU) 7-5
Singles competition
1. MENA, Eduardo (TTU) def. Lucas Plesky (UTC) 6-2, 6-4
2. Niklas Gerdes (UTC) def. ESTEBAN, Alberto (TTU) 1-6, 6-1, 6-2
3. BERNARDES, Marcos (TTU) def. Nic Wilson (UTC) 6-2, 5-7, 6-3
4. Pablo Llebeili (UTC) def. MILA, Marc (TTU) 7-5, 6-2
5. Simon Bustamante (UTC) vs. ALFONZO, Jorge (TTU) 7-6 (15-13), 6-7 (8-10), unfinished
6. Max Grobbelaar (UTC) def. TAJES, Carlos (TTU) 6-0, 6-1
Match Notes
Tennessee Tech 1-1
Chattanooga 1-4
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (1,6,4,2,3)
"This was a huge win for us," stated head coach Carlos Garcia. "It is tough to describe the feeling after having such a tough start to the season. I am glad to see the guys experience some success after all of the hard work they have put in."
Chattanooga jumped out early, taking the first two doubles matches for a 1-0 lead. Senior Lucas Plesky and freshman Simon Bustamante opened with a 6-4 win over Eduardo Mena and Alberto Esteban at No. 1. Senior Derrick Brown and junior Michael Birnbaum clinched the point with their 7-5 win over Jorge Alfonzo and Guillermo Nicolas at No. 3.
Singles started out even with both teams taking three first sets. Mena tied the score with a (6-2, 6-1) win over Plesky at No. 1. Freshman Max Grobbelaar quickly responded with a (6-0, 6-1) win over Carlos Taejas at No. 6.
The Mocs went up 3-1 when sophomore Pablo Llebeili defeated Marc Mila (7-5, 6-2) at No. 4. UTC needed one more win on the night to clinch the match, but the last three were all tight.
Freshman Niklas Gerdes lost his first set to Esteban 6-1 at No. 2. He battled back to take the second frame 6-1. Leading 4-2 in the third, he broke Esteban again to take a 5-2 advantage. He then served out for the win and the team victory.
"Nik is a very mature freshman," added Garcia. "He beat a very good senior when we really needed him to step up. He has already had some big wins and I expect him to keep improving as the season progresses."
TTU won at No. 3 and the No. 5 match did not finish. Chattanooga improved to 1-4 on the year while the Golden Eagles dropped to 1-1.
Next up for the Mocs is a Sunday match against former Southern Conference foe Georgia Southern (1-2). First serve is set for 10:00 a.m. (E.S.T.) at the Racquet Club in Hixson. Find a link for live scoring on the men's tennis schedule page on GoMocs.com.
Chattanooga 4, Tennessee Tech 2
Feb 03, 2017 at Chattanooga, Tenn. (Racquet Club)
Doubles competition
1. Lucas Plesky/Simon Bustamante (UTC) def. MENA, Eduardo/ESTEBAN, Alberto (TTU) 6-4
2. BERNARDES, Marcos/TAJES, Carlos (TTU) vs. Niklas Gerdes/Nic Wilson (UTC) no result
3. Michael Birnbaum/Derrick Brown (UTC) def. ALFONZO, Jorge/NICOLAS, Guillermo (TTU) 7-5
Singles competition
1. MENA, Eduardo (TTU) def. Lucas Plesky (UTC) 6-2, 6-4
2. Niklas Gerdes (UTC) def. ESTEBAN, Alberto (TTU) 1-6, 6-1, 6-2
3. BERNARDES, Marcos (TTU) def. Nic Wilson (UTC) 6-2, 5-7, 6-3
4. Pablo Llebeili (UTC) def. MILA, Marc (TTU) 7-5, 6-2
5. Simon Bustamante (UTC) vs. ALFONZO, Jorge (TTU) 7-6 (15-13), 6-7 (8-10), unfinished
6. Max Grobbelaar (UTC) def. TAJES, Carlos (TTU) 6-0, 6-1
Match Notes
Tennessee Tech 1-1
Chattanooga 1-4
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (1,6,4,2,3)
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3
#1 Singles Match
12
66
24
#2 Singles Match
123
612
166
#3 Singles Match
123
656
273
#4 Singles Match
12
52
76
#5 Singles Match
123
67UF
760
#6 Singles Match
12
01
66
Order of Finish:
1,6,4,2,3
Tuesday, September 30
Tuesday, August 26
Tuesday, July 15
Thursday, April 17
