The seventh-ranked Georgia men’s tennis team used a dominant performance Saturday afternoon at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex to take down South Carolina State, 4-0, and advance to the second round of the 2016 NCAA Championships.
Georgia improves to 21-4 on the season, while South Carolina State falls to 12-9. The Bulldogs return to action Sunday at 1 p.m. ET with a match against No. 35 Baylor with a trip to the NCAA Round of 16 on the line.
“I thought we were a little bit rusty in doubles, but we came out pretty energized, which was the difference,” head coach Manuel Diaz said. “In singles, Wayne Montgomery played a terrific match. Nick Wood and Emil Reinberg both did a tremendous job to close it out quickly. All of the matches were competitive today. South Carolina State has a very good team. They deserve to be here, and they played us tight just about everywhere.”
Paul Oosterbaan and Jan Zielinski got things rolling with a 6-2 win on the No. 2 doubles court. 11th-ranked Austin Smith and Ben Wagland followed suit with a 6-3 decision at the No. 1 position, giving Georgia the doubles point.
Senior Nick Wood put the Bulldogs up 2-0 with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over South Carolina State’s Alexander Stupar on the No. 5 court. Sophomore Wayne Montgomery finished shortly after with a 6-1, 6-3 win at the No. 1 position against South Carolina State’s Martin Figura.
“It feels good,” Montgomery said. “In doubles, I thought we had a hard time getting after them, but we did a great job in singles. I feel like we have put in the work over the last couple of weeks – I think we are confident and everyone is playing well.”
At the No. 6 court, freshman Emil Reinberg delivered the match clincher with a 6-1, 6-1 win against Edgar Diaz. The match clincher marked the fifth of the season for the Atlanta, Georgia native.
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NCAA MEN’S TENNIS TOURNAMENT
REGIONALS – ROUND 1 – RESULTS
Dan Magill Tennis Complex
May 14, 2016 – Athens, GA
No. 7 Georgia defeats South Carolina State (4-0)
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (5,1,6)
Official: Richard Rogers T-1:45
Singles
1. #17 Wayne Montgomery (UGA) def. Martin Figura (SCSUM) 6-1, 6-3
2. #32 Paul Oosterbaan (UGA) vs. Vladyslav Yanchenko (SCSUM) 6-4, 2-2, unfinished
3. #64 Walker Duncan (UGA) vs. Jakub Vitek (SCSUM) 6-3, 2-3, unfinished
4. #123 Jan Zielinski (UGA) vs. Stanislav Baco (SCSUM) 6-6, unfinished
5. Nick Wood (UGA) def. Aleksander Stupar (SCSUM) 6-1, 6-1
6. Emil Reinberg (UGA) def. Edgar Diaz (SCSUM) 6-1, 6-1
Doubles
1. #11 Austin Smith/Ben Wagland (UGA) def. Martin Figura/Jakub Vitek (SCSUM) 6-4
2. Paul Oosterbaan/Jan Zielinski (UGA) def. Vladyslav Yanchenko/Salih Gilmutdinov (SCSUM) 6-2
3. Wayne Montgomery/Emil Reinberg (UGA) vs. Stanislav Baco/Edgar Diaz (SCSUM) 4-4, unfinished