By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Tennessee Tech tennis team fought tooth and nail in its Friday doubleheader at Florida State, but the Golden Eagles were unable to escape the Sunshine State with a win, falling in both matches at the Scott Speicher Memorial Tennis Center. The Golden Eagles (0-5) dropped the first clash, 4-3, and were tripped up in the second affair, 6-1.
1st Match (Florida State 4, Tennessee Tech 3)
In TTU's first contest since a double dip at Alabama on Feb. 13, the Golden Eagles managed to collect three singles nods for their first solo triumphs of the year. Evzen Holis impressed with a straight-set, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Richard Thongoana in the No. 3 position, while Mika Berghaus accomplished the same feat thanks to a straight-set, 6-3, 7-6 (9-7) win against Chase Wood in the No. 6 battle for the TTU freshman's first career singles victory.
Elias Grubert was responsible for TTU's other nod behind a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 triumph over Enzo Le Seguillon in the No. 3 get-together.
Florida State (5-5) was able to achieve success at the top with victories in the first two matchups. Carlos Vicente applied more than his fair share of pressure against nationally-ranked Alex Knaff in the No. 1 clash, as Vicente fell 7-5 in the first set, but bounced back with a 6-4 win in the second. Knaff, the No. 77 player in the country, took home the third set, 6-2, to clinch the highly-contested matchup.
Loris Pourroy took down Rafael Tosetto with a 6-1, 6-4 nod in the No. 2 spot and Marcus Walters accounted for the other Seminole singles victory with a 6-4, 6-3 victory against Andre Rodeia in the No. 5 position.
FSU seized the doubles point after the Seminoles picked up wins in the top two duels. Alex Knaff and Sebastian Arcila edged Evzen Holis and Jun Sasagawa, 6-4, in the No. 1 affair, while Marcus Walters and Loris Pourroy took home a 6-2 win over Carlos Vicente and Andre Rodeia in the No. 2 tilt.
Rafael Tosetto and Elias Grubert's battle with Bryn Nahrung and Richard Thongoana went unfinished in the No. 3 slot.
2nd Match (Florida State 6, Tennessee Tech 1)
Andre Rodeia picked up his first career singles win and accounted for Tech's lone triumph in the day's second match with a 6-2, 6-3 victory against Enzo Le Seguillon in the No. 5 contest.
Despite falling in their respective singles clashes, Rafael Tosetto, Elias Grubert and Evzen Holis all found a way to capture a set in their three-set matchups. Tosetto battled back after being tripped up 6-4 in the opener with Richard Thongoana in the No. 2 spot, as the Golden Eagle sophomore out of Jacarei, Brazil powered past Thongoana, 6-3, in the second set. Ultimately, the FSU red-shirt sophomore would have the last laugh behind a 6-2 win in the finale.
Grubert opened his No. 4 get-together with Marcus Walters with a 6-3 first-set nod, but fell in the next two with a 6-2 loss in the second and a 6-3 defeat in the third. Holis used a 6-3 second-set victory after he was upended in the first set, 6-1, by Sebastian Arcila, but Arcila claimed a 6-4 triumph in the final set to take the No. 3 battle.
Florida State earned straight-set wins in the No. 1 and No. 6 clashes, with Loris Pourroy knocking off Carlos Vicente, 6-2, 6-4, in the No. 1 position and Andreja Petrovic carding a 6-2, 6-3 win against Mika Berghaus out of the No. 6 spot.
FSU started off the match by collecting the doubles point, but the Golden Eagles found a way to take one of the three meetings. Elias Grubert and Rafael Tosetto charged past Chase Wood and Bryn Nahrung with a 6-3 win in the No. 3 slot.
Alex Knaff and Sebastian Arcila picked up a 6-3 victory against Carlos Vicente and Andre Rodeia in the No. 1 tandem tango and Marcus Walters and Loris Pourroy finished off doubles action with a 7-5 nod against Evzen Holis and Jun Sasagawa in the No. 2 gathering.
With Tech's heavy dose of "Power 5" competition now in the rear-view mirror, the Golden Eagles will set their sights on a trip to the Peach State for back-to-back matchups with a pair of Georgia schools. TTU will see Gardner-Webb in a match played in Kennesaw on Saturday, Mar. 6, before meeting Kennesaw State on Sunday, Mar. 7. Both contests are slated for noon CT beginnings.
Photo by Thomas Corhern
