March 16, 2016
Final Stats
UCF - No. 64 Georgia State stats
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - The men's tennis team came up short in a long battle with No. 64 Georgia State at the UCF Tennis Complex on Wednesday afternoon. The Panthers held off a late rally from the Knights to claim a 4-2 victory.
Credit goes to Georgia State, assistant coach Brandon Stokes said. They're nationally ranked for a reason. They've had a heck of a season. They were able to sneak out the doubles point, which was critical. We battled; every team battled. It was awesome. They made the plays to finish games and sets and matches that we continue to improve upon. We're there; we'll have our breakthrough moment.
The Panthers took a 1-0 lead in the match with wins at No. 1 and No. 2 doubles, and built a 2-0 lead with a win at No. 3 singles.
UCF (6-9) halted the Georgia State run with a win from junior Chris Barrus at No. 2 singles. He won his opening set, 6-1, and won second set tiebreaker to claim the point.
The Panthers pushed out to a 3-1 lead with a win at No. 4 singles, but sophomore Nico De Fraia added a second point for UCF at No. 5 singles.
After winning the opening set, 6-2, De Fraia bounced back from dropping the second set to claim a 6-0 victory in the third set.
Junior Inaki Espindola and junior Reece Acree were each battling in third sets at No. 1 and No. 6, respectively, to keep the match going. Acree saved nine match points and was ahead 6-5 in the third set when Jannis Koeke secured the Georgia State victory on court one.
The Knights are back in action on Sunday, closing out their home stand against UAB at 10 a.m.
Coaches Corner
It was an awesome three-and-a-half hour tennis match. Again, thank you to our fans and supporters. It means everything and really helps the guys keep pushing and fighting. It was a beautiful day, hot and humid. Great Florida weather and we love it.
Credit goes to Georgia State. They're nationally ranked for a reason. They've had a heck of a season. They were able to sneak out the doubles point, which was critical. We battled; every team battled. It was awesome. They made the plays to finish games and sets and matches that we continue to improve upon. We're there; we'll have our breakthrough moment. We've got to go earn it.
We're excited to get back on court tomorrow and get ready to welcome in another tough team on Sunday.
Reece, at No. 6 singles, saved nine match points. He continued to fight for his team, but unfortunately he wasn't able to finish his match. Inaki was fighting, going three sets at No. 1. We're proud of everybody's energy and competitiveness, but we have some more improving to do.
No. 64 Georgia State 4, UCF 2
Singles competition
1. Koeke,Jannis (GSU) def. Inaki Espindola (UCF) 5-7, 6-3, 6-3
2. Chris Barrus (UCF) def. Kennedy,Zackery (GSU) 6-1, 7-6 (3)
3. Andrukhou,Andrei (GSU) def. Jose Sangroniz (UCF) 6-2, 6-4
4. Acuna,Sebastian (GSU) def. Mariano Porter (UCF) 7-5, 6-3
5. Nico De Fraia (UCF) def. MacFarlane,Jack (GSU) 6-2, 2-6, 6-0
6. Reece Acree (UCF) vs. Jaworski,Felipe (GSU) 3-6, 7-6 (10), 6-5, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. Acuna,Sebastian/Andrukhou,Andrei (GSU) def. Chris Barrus/Inaki Espindola (UCF) 7-5
2. Kennedy,Zackery/MacFarlane,Jack (GSU) def. Reece Acree/Tyler Pate (UCF) 7-5
3. Mariano Porter/Jack Thiessen (UCF) vs. Koeke,Jannis/Jaworski,Felipe (GSU) 6-6, unfinished
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (3,2,4,1,5)
Story by Megan Herboth; Photos by Brad Helton