May 26, 2010
AUBURN, Ala. - Auburn junior Tim Puetz advanced to the second round of the 2010 NCAA Men's Tennis Singles Championship Wednesday with a two-set victory over Binghamton's Sven Vloedgraven at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex at the University of Georgia.
Competing in his first-career NCAA singles tournament, No. 16 Puetz recorded a 6-3, 6-3 victory over No. 123 Vloedgraven to move on to the next round. Puetz will face Texas A&M's Jeff Dadamo, who is ranked No. 39 in the nation.
"I played well and am happy to get a win in my first match," Puetz said. "I'm thankful it was a quick match so that I'm now able to save up some energy for the long and busy day tomorrow."
Head coach Eric Shore was happy with Puetz's play and pleased to get the first-round victory.
"Tim played a solid match and it is always helpful to play right away in the morning and avoid the heat of the day," Shore said. "The tournament is going to get tougher, so picking up a straight-set win right away is a great way to start."
The victory pushes Puetz, the 2010 Southern Region Player to Watch, to 15-6 on the season and he improves to 13-6 against opponents in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Top-125.
Vloedgraven, the two-time American East Player of the Year, finishes his junior year with a 38-9 overall mark.
Puetz will face Dadamo in the round of 32 on Thursday. The junior from Dallas, Texas, is 28-12 on the season and also competing in his first NCAA singles tournament. Dadamo opened the tournament with a two-set (6-4, 7-6) victory over Wake Forest's Steven Forman.
The duo of Puetz and Alex Stamchev start the NCAA Doubles Championships Thursday as well, facing Ohio State's Chase Buchanan and Dino Marcan in the round of 32.
Fans can follow all the action with live scoring and free video streaming at www.georgiadogs.com.