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MTennis: Dawgs defeat Jackets making it 13 straight

The No. 20 Georgia men’s tennis team came back to defeat its rival Georgia Tech, 5-2, winning its 13^th-straight match against the Yellow Jackets on Tuesday evening at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

Despite dropping the doubles point, the Bulldogs (4-1) won five singles matches, with Cyrus Mahjoob clinching the match on court six. The freshman closed out a three-set win over Georgia Tech’s (7-2) Rohan Sachdev, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, earning the second match-clinching win of his career. Georgia is now 37-1 in its previous 38 matches against its in-state rival.

“It took serious maturity from our young guys to win today,” head coach Manuel Diaz said. “I couldn’t ask for better matches from our veterans, Thomas and Miguel. It was just an outstanding win by Thomas at number one singles against one of the country’s top players. He’s come such a long way. Our team unity is making a big difference. We have a very young team with three freshmen in the bottom three positions and out there in doubles as well. They just showed a lot of toughness, losing the first set at four and six, and had a lot of resolve and willpower to do what needed to be done. It wasn’t about playing great; it was about just making more balls and being a little bit tougher, not looking for shortcuts. Our young guys did a tremendous job.”

Georgia dropped the doubles point for the first time this season, losing on courts one and two. Ryan Colby and Thomas Paulsell went down two breaks early on court two and could not battle back, falling by a 6-2 score. On court one, Freddy Blaydes and Niels Ratiu went up a break to begin their match but could not capitalize on the advantage and lost their first match together, 6-3.

Moving into singles competition, the Bulldogs eventually fell behind in the match after No. 36 Colby lost for the first time this season on court three. Despite trailing 2-0, Georgia would go on to win all five remaining matches. Blaydes defeated Elias Shokry, 6-3, 6-3, earning his first singles victory on court five. No. 43 Miguel Perez Peña found himself down a break in the first set but battled back to take it, eventually winning his first career match on court two over Keshav Chopra in straight sets. On court one, No. 41 Thomas Paulsell beat Andres Martin, 7-5, 6-4, and put the contest at match point in Georgia’s favor. Both Martin and Chopra were 7-0 in singles headed into today’s match.

All eyes came down to court six, where No. 112 Mahjoob was in a third set, looking to break Sachdev one final time to clinch the match. The Rockville, Md. native went on to win his 15^th match of the year, tied for most on the team. Ratiu then capped off the day by picking up the first ranked win of his collegiate career with a 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 decision against No. 67 Gabriele Brancatelli.

“I don’t even know if I explain my emotions after clinching match,” Mahjoob said. “After I realized I won the last point, and I looked over to see my guys, who want me to win, that love me, all sprinting towards the court to celebrate together. There were so many emotions going through my head. In the third set, I was just worried about myself staying poised, but the support from Georgia was unreal. It’s empowering me while also making the other guy feel how tough it is to win out here. Knowing that there’s our whole team, the coaches, everyone on the sides that loves you and want you to win as badly as you do is insane.”

Georgia’s next two matches will come on the road. The Bulldogs will head to Charlottesville, Va. to take on No. 3 Virginia, the two-time defending National Champions, on Friday, Feb. 9 at 5 p.m. ET. The team will then travel to Chapel Hill, N.C. and play No. 17 North Carolina on Sunday, Feb. 11 at 1 p.m. to close out the week.  

No. 20 Georgia 5, Georgia Tech 2

Doubles competition

1. Keshav Chopra/Marcus McDaniel (GT) def. Niels Ratiu/Freddy Blaydes (UGA) 6-3
2. Gabriele Brancatelli/Andres Martin (GT) def. Thomas Paulsell/Ryan Colby (UGA) 6-2
3. Miguel Perez Peña/Cyrus Mahjoob (UGA) vs. Elias Shokry/Rohan Sachdev (GT) 3-5, unfinished

Order of finish: 2, 1*

Singles competition

1. No. 41 Thomas Paulsell (UGA) def. Andres Martin (GT) 7-5, 6-4

2. No. 43 Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) def. Keshav Chopra (GT) 6-4, 6-3 

3. Marcus McDaniel (GT) def. No. 36 Ryan Colby (UGA) 6-3, 6-3

4. Niels Ratiu (UGA) def. No. 67 Gabriele Brancatelli (GT) 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 

5. Freddy Blaydes (UGA) def. Elias Shokry (GT) 6-3, 6-3

6. No. 112 Cyrus Mahjoob (UGA) def. Rohan Sachdev (GT) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3

Order of finish: 3, 5, 2, 1, 6*, 4

Baseball: Charlie Condon has been named to the NCBWA Preseason All-America First Team + baseball ticket info

Condon, the 6-foot-6, 216-pound consensus National Freshman of the Year is coming off an impressive rookie campaign where he captured the team’s Triple Crown, hitting .386 with 25 home runs and 67 RBI.

The Marietta, Ga., native started in all 56 games, while leading all freshmen nationally in OPS (1.284) and slugging and tied for the most home runs among freshmen. The sophomore is projected as a premium pick in the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft.

The preseason All-America squads are considered the first step toward the eventual selection of the 2024 Dick Howser Trophy presented by the Game Headwear and voted on by members of the NCBWA.

Georgia is preparing for the 2024 season that begins Feb. 16. The Bulldogs open the season by playing host to UNC-Asheville in a three-game series at Foley Field. Ike Cousins head baseball coach Wes Johnson is in his first season leading the Bulldogs.

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Fans can now purchase single game tickets for the upcoming season. Single game tickets and SEC special packages are now on sale. For ticket or group info questions, please call (706) 542-1231 or 877-542-1231. Ticket sales are available online here: https://gado.gs/bba

Prices range from as low as $5 for general admission non-conference games (excluding Georgia Tech and Clemson), $10 for SEC games plus Georgia Tech and Clemson. Fans can save 20 percent with a “Flex Plan” when purchasing three games or more while group tickets are an option too.

Also, tickets are available for Georgia’s game with Georgia Southern on March 5th at SRP Park in North Augusta, S.C. The Bulldogs will be the visiting team and be in the first base dugout. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m. For these tickets, click here: http://www.gado.gs/1ij

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