Tennis squads ace season-opener tests
The GCSU tennis teams each opened their seasons with shutout victories this past week.
The men’s team won its first match of the season last Saturday when it shut out Morehouse 9-0.
In No. 1 singles, sophomore Jerome Leborgne swept his opponent 6-0 in the first set and 6-3 in the second set.
In No. 2 singles, Johan Wadstein defeated his opponent 6-0 in the first set and 6-3 in the second set.
In No. 3 singles, senior Max Beliankou defeated his opponent 6-0, 6-0, earning him the first men’s singles shutout victory of the 2010 season.
The results for No. 4 singles play were the same, as sophomore Leo Bernardes was able to earn a 6-0, 6-0 shutout victory.
In No. 5 singles play, senior Giovane Nucci allowed his opponent to win only one game in his match that ended in a 6-1, 6-0 win.
In No. 6 singles, freshman Wictor Andersson kept the momentum going by earning a tough 7-5 win in the first set, then shutting his opponent down 6-0 in the second set to set the Bobcats record at 6-0.
In men’s doubles, the No. 1 team composed of Leborgne and Wadstein came out on top against their opponents in the eight-game pro set with an 8-1 win. The second doubles team made up of senior Joao Casagrande and freshman Tyler Franks fought hard and went to extra games with their opponents to earn a 9-7 victory. The senior duo of Beliankou and Nucci came together for the third slot doubles and were victorious against their opponents with the convincing score of 8-1, giving the men their 9-0 shutout against the Black Panthers.
The Bobcats men’s tennis team is at home next week as it takes on Erskine College on Tuesday at 2 p.m.
“We’ll probably play around for about the first month with the lineups,” head coach Steve Barsby said. “Our next match will be sort of an indication of who can handle the spots we put them at and who can’t.”
The GCSU women’s tennis team also got their season off to a good start as they defeated Clark Atlanta on Sunday with a shutout victory of 9-0.
In No. 1 singles, senior Diane Danna played hard and defeated her opponent 7-6 in the first set. In the second set, Danna had a 4-0 lead when her opponent had to retire to due injury, resulting a victory by forfeit for Danna.
No. 2 singles slot freshman Kayla Barksdale claimed the season’s first shutout victory 6-0, 6-0 against her opponent.
Keeping the momentum up, junior Bertille Lion in No. 3 singles also swept her opponent in a shutout win.
Singles slots 5 and 6 were automatic wins for the Bobcats that resulted from Black Panther forfeits.
In women’s No. 1 doubles, upperclassmen Danna and Lion joined forces to defeat their opponents 8-3. In the second doubles slot, the freshman duo of Barksdale and Michelle Lingner worked together to earn the first doubles shutout victory 8-0 against their Clark Atlanta opponents. For No. 3 sophomore Adriana Acuna and freshman Linda
Mosa earned a victory due to default, giving the women’s’ team a 9-0 shutout victory against the Black Panthers.
“Both the teams we played so far weren’t a good indication,” Barsby said. “We play them because they’re close to us (geographically) but they’re nowhere near the competition we’re going to play.”
“Last year’s teams are going to be tough to live up to,” Barsby added. “If our girls can finish in the top half and the guys can finish top two or three, that’s what were shooting for.”
The Bobcats are at home next Thursday to face Valdosta State at 2 p.m.
“Valdosta’s a real good team, and I think our girls are going to struggle a little bit against them,” Barsby said. “And our guys are young, so you really don’t know what you’re going to get. It’ll be a good indication of where we’re at.”
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