PENSACOLA, Fla. – The No. 2-ranked and No. 1-seeded University of West Florida men’s tennis team (24-2) advanced to the NCAA South Regional #1 finals today with a 5-0 victory over No. 8-seeded West Alabama in Pensacola. West Florida won all three doubles matches and two singles matches to take the victory. The Gulf South Champion Argos have won their last 15 matches.
Yesterday, UWA opened the regional with a 5-0 victory over No. 9-seed Fort Valley State and advanced to the semifinals. Today is the second time this season that the Argos beat the Tigers as West Florida defeated UWA, 8-1, in a Gulf South Conference match on March 9th. UWA’s season ends with an 18-6 record.
UWF swept doubles. West Florida went up 1-0 as Argonauts Kevin Ducros (Aix-en-Provence, France) and Bruno Savi (Santana do Livramento, Brazil) defeated Nestor Vargas and Adam Drysdale, 8-3, at the No. 1 position. Ducros and Savi are the No. 2 doubles tandem in the nation and the South Region. At the No. 3 line, UWF’s Mike Lue (Richmond Hill, Ontario) and Domenico Sano (Macaray, Venezuela) teamed to defeat Manuel Grossman and Honorio Fernandez, 8-4. In the remaining doubles match, the No. 17-ranked duo of Leandro Ferreira (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and Andrey Pozhidaev (Sochi, Russia) defeated Anton Ivanov and Kike Ruiz, 8-6. Ferreira and Pozhidaev have won their last 11 matches at the No. 2 position.
The Argos took a 3-0 lead into doubles. West Florida went up, 4-0, as No. 12-ranked Savi defeated Ivanov, 6-1, 6-2, at the No. 2 position. No. 9-ranked Ducros recorded a straight set, 6-4, 6-2, victory over Vargas at the No. 1 line, giving UWF the 5-0 victory. Once UWF clinched the overall victory, all other matches were halted. The Argos were leading all of the remaining matches.
West Florida advances to the finals of NCAA South Regional #1. The Argos will face the winner of the semifinals match between No. 4-seed Rollins and No. 5-sed Saint Leo. First serve of the NCAA South Regional #1 finals will be at 3 p.m. on Monday, April 30th, at the Ralph “Skeeter” Carson Tennis Complex on the UWF campus. Live stats, results and a recap of the match will be available on GoArgos.com. For information on all UWF Athletics, visit www.GoArgos.com.
#ARGOS#
#2 West Florida 5, West Alabama 0
04/29/12 at Pensacola, Fla. (Ralph “Skeeter” Carson Tennis Complex)
NCAA South Regional #1 - Semifinals
Singles Competition
1. No. 9 Kevin Ducros (UWF) def. Nestor Vargas (UWA) 6-4, 6-2
2. No. 12 Bruno Savi (UWF) def. Anton Ivanov (UWA) 6-1, 6-2
3. Elio Latela (UWF) vs. Adam Drysdale (UWA) 6-3, 5-2, unfinished
4. Domenico Sano (UWF) vs. Kike Ruiz (UWA) 6-2, 4-1 unfinished
5. Mike Lue (UWF) vs. Manuel Grossman (UWA) 6-2, 5-0 unfinished
6. Sean Gunnels (UWF) vs. Honorio Fernandez (UWA) 7-5, 2-1 unfinished
Doubles Competition
1. #2 Bruno Savi/Kevin Ducros (UWF) def. Nestor Vargas/Adam Drysdale (UWA) 8-3
2. #17 Leandro Ferreira/Andrey Pozhidaev (UWF) def. Anton Ivanov/Kike Ruiz (UWA) 8-6
3. Mike Lue/Domenico Sano (UWF) def. Manuel Grossman/Honorio Fernandez (UWA) 8-4
Match Notes
West Florida 24-2; National Ranking #2; South Region #1
West Alabama 18-6; National Ranking NR; South Region #9
Order of Finish: D1, D3, D2, S2, S1
West Florida #1 seed; West Alabama #8 seed in South Region
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