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 Doug Matthews, Xavier |
April 4, 2008
MONROEVILLE, Pa. - Top seeded George Washington cruised to a 4-0 victory over eighth-seeded Rhode Island in the opening round of the 2008 Men's Tennis Championship held at Club 4 Life in Monroeville, Pa. The Colonials , led by senior Mustafa Gencsoy's 6-1, 7-6 (6) first flight singles victory, are on their way to the semifinals for the third time in four years.
Earlier in the day Rhode Island battled ninth-seeded Dayton in Friday's first match, which saw the Flyers jump out an early lead after capturing the doubles point before the Rams stormed back to tie the match, 3-3. Rhode Island sophomore Jeff Cote came through for the Rams with a dramatic 7-5, 7-6 (4) to victory from the second flight to secure the URI victory, 4-3.
After moving past Fordham in the opening round, 4-0, St. Bonaventure advanced to the quarterfinals for a meeting with fourth-seeded Duquesne. The Dukes took four singles matches to the third set but came up short and fell to the Bonnies, 4-1. St. Bonaventure was led by sophomore Diego Valdenegro's two singles victories on the day from the fifth flight, in addition to a pair of doubles victories paired with junior teammate Jonathan Luce. St. Bonaventure has now reached the semifinals seven times in the past eight years.
Sixth-seeded Richmond put forth a convincing 5-0 victory over eleventh-seeded La Salle before moving on to face defending A-10 Champion Charlotte. After losing the doubles point, the 49ers responded with four singles victories and a trip to the semifinals round for the third straight season. Senior Felix Bernhoerster and junior Brad Clinard each secured victories from first and second flight singles, winning 7-5, 6-4 and 6-1, 7-5 respectively.
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The 49ers will face second-seeded Xavier, who captured a 4-0 victory against tenth-seeded Saint Louis in the late contest. The Billikens upset seventh seeded Saint Joseph's earlier in the evening, 4-0, to earn their spot in the quarterfinals. Led by junior Doug Matthews and sophomore Chris Herrlinger, who teamed for an 8-4 victory in No. 1 doubles and followed it with first and second flight victories, the Musketeers will look to reach the championship match for the second year in a row.
Saturday's action commences at 8:00am with the consolation matches and play continues through 2:00pm. The semifinal match between George Washington and St. Bonaventure will begin at approximately 11:00am, with Charlotte and Xavier starting at 2:00pm.
For complete coverage of the Championship, log on to www.atlantic10.org
