ORLANDO, Fla. - The top-seeded VCU Rams and the fourth-seeded Davidson Wildcats played their way into the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 Conference Men's Tennis Championship, playing Thursday at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla. The teams will face each other on Friday at 5:30 pm for the first time this season.
The defending Champion Rams got out to a quick start in doubles action, picking up the No. 3 doubles court behind a dominant 6-0 performance from Romain Gales and Joaquim Almeida. The pair of Rayane Stable and Matisse Bobichon clinched the early point in the match, taking court No. 2, 6-3. In singles action, VCU struck first on each of the opening sets, with the exception of Saint Joseph's Inigo Diaz, who picked up a 6-2 set over Maxence Bertimon. Romain Gales earned the next point for VCU, defeating Nassim Fenjiro, 6-2, 6-1 at No. 4 singles, followed by Stable, who netted a 6-0, 6-3 victory in the second flight. Almedia continued his momentum into singles play, first outlasting Oscar Serra in a first-set tiebreak, then finishing him off, 6-0 Rams' final point.
The second match of the session, featuring Davidson and George Mason was a battle from the start. The Patriots' pair of Alvaro Pedraza and Monil Lotlikar were the first to finish at No. 3 doubles, 6-2, before their teammates on Court No. 2, Rishab Sardana and Niza Simunyola followed behind, 6-4. At the top flight, Davidson's Max Kachkarov and Juan Camilo Perez Gongora were knotted at 5-5 against Rithik Sardana and Momin Khan when the point was clinched. Perez Gongora dropped just one game at No. 4 singles to even the match at one apiece. Davidson flipped the match at the top two spots, taking a 3-1 match lead as Alejandro Solares and Will Clark took down their opponents in straight-sets. Lotlikar and Simunyola would answer back for George Mason, each winning their second sets in the tiebreak to once again even the match score. On court No. 6, Davidson's Jerry Wang survived dropping his opening set to outlast Hayden Postin, 6-4, 6-4 to clinch the match, 4-3 for the Wildcats.
MATCH #3
#1 VCU def. #9 SAINT JOSEPH’S, 4-0
SINGLES
1. Matisse Bobichon (VCU) vs. Alejandro Vedri (SJU) 6-4, 5-3, DNF
2. Rayane Stable (VCU) def. Justus Agbo (SJU) 6-0, 6-3
3. Inigo Diaz (SJU) vs. Maxence Bertimon (VCU) 6-2, 5-5, DNF
4. Romain Gales (VCU) def. Nassim Fenjiro (SJU) 6-2, 6-1
5. Joaquim de Almeida (VCU) def. Oscar Serra (SJU) 7-6(5), 6-0
6. Etienne Marty (VCU) vs. Eli Gan-Dy (SJU) 6-2, 5-1, DNF
Order of Finish: 4, 2, 5
DOUBLES
1. Charles Bertimon/Maxence Bertimon (VCU) vs. Alejandro Vedri/Inigo Diaz (SJU) 5-4, DNF
2. Matisse Bobichon/Rayane Stable (VCU) def. Oscar Serra/John Butler (SJU) 6-3
3. Romain Gales/Joaquim de Almeida def. (VCU) Nassim Fenjiro/Justus Agbo (SJU) 6-0
Order of Finish: 3, 2
MATCH #4
#4 DAVIDSON def. #5 GEORGE MASON, 4-3
SINGLES
1. Alejandro Solares (DAV) def. Rithik Sardana (MASON) 6-3, 6-0
2. Will Clark (DAV) def. Momin Khan (MASON) 6-2, 6-2
3. Monil Lotlikar (MASON) def. Max Kachkarov (DAV) 6-1, 7-6(1)
4. Juan Camilo Perez Gongora (DAV) def. Rishab Sardana (MASON) 6-0, 6-1
5. Niza Simunyola (MASON) def. Nico Pinzon (DAV) 6-0, 7-6 (8)
6. Jerry Wang (DAV) def. Hayden Postin (MASON) 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
Order of Finish: 4, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6
DOUBLES
1. Max Kachkarov/Juan Camilo Perez Gongora (DAV) vs .Rithik Sardana/Momin Khan (MASON) 5-5, DNF
2. Rishab Sardana/Niza Simunyola (MASON) def. Alejandro Solares/Nico Pinzon (DAV) 6-4
3. Alvaro Pedraza/Monil Lotlikar (MASON) def. Jerry Wang/Luca Lovrich (DAV) 6-2
Order of Finish: 3, 2