Men’s Tennis: Bulldogs Top Aggies in SEC Opener

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Men’s Tennis: Bulldogs Top Aggies in SEC Opener

Wayne Montgomery during a NCAA mens tennis match between the Texas A&M Aggies and the University of Georgia Bulldogs at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex on Friday, March 6, 2015 in Athens, Ga.
(Photo by John Kelley)
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The fourth-ranked Georgia men’s tennis team opened its SEC home schedule with a 4-1 win over 10th-ranked Texas A&M Friday afternoon at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.


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Georgia (10-2, 3-0 SEC) has now won 24 of its last 25 SEC regular season matches, and this was the Bulldogs’ third win against a top-10 opponent this season.
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“I’m really proud of our guys,” said head coach Manuel Diaz. “I thought we fought a really good fight. Texas A&M is one of the highest-ranked teams in the conference, so it was a great win for our squad. I honestly don’t think we played our best, but I keep telling the guys that I haven’t seen a bad win yet. These guys knew how to recognize the opportunities that were in front of them and they fought hard and played well enough to beat a very good team today.”
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The Aggies (6-2, 2-1 SEC) entered the match having won all seven of its doubles points this season, and they had only lost one individual doubles match all year. Georgia, however, won the doubles point on Friday to take a 1-0 lead. At No. 1, the 10th-ranked pair of Austin Smith and Ben Wagland improved to 6-0 with a 6-2 win over the eighth-ranked team of Harrison Adams and Shane Vinsant. The Aggies responded with a 6-4 win at No. 3, then Eric Diaz and Nathan Pasha clinched the point with a 6-4 win over No. 22 Jeremy Efferding and Jordan Szabo at No. 2.
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Nick Wood during a NCAA mens tennis match between the Texas A&M Aggies and the University of Georgia Bulldogs at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex on Friday, March 6, 2015 in Athens, Ga.
(Photo by John Kelley)
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Georgia has now won the doubles point in seven consecutive matches.
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In singles, Nathan Pasha extended the Georgia lead to 2-0 with his 7-5, 6-1 win over No. 39 Adams and No. 3, then A&M cut the lead to 2-1 when Arthur Rinderknech beat Ben Wagland, 6-3, 6-2 at No. 2. The Bulldogs answered back as Paul Oosterbaan ran his winning streak to three matches with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Max Lunkin. Nick Wood then furnished his fourth clincher of the season with a 7-5, 7-5 win over No. 88 AJ Catanzariti at No. 5.
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Smith led 5-4 in the third set at No. 1 against No. 65 Vinsant and Wayne Montgomery trailed Efferding 3-0 in the third when the match was clinched as Georgia won for the fifth time against a top-20 opponent this season.
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The Bulldogs will be back in action Sunday at 1 p.m. against LSU at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. Admission is free.
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Nathan Pasha watches his return during a NCAA mens tennis match between the Texas A&M Aggies and the University of Georgia Bulldogs at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex on Friday, March 6, 2015 in Athens, Ga.
(Photo by John Kelley)
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