Feb. 20, 2011
AUBURN, Ala. - The No. 22 Auburn men's tennis team was defeated by No. 15 Georgia Tech, 4-3, Sunday at the Yarbrough Tennis Center. With the loss, the Tigers fall to 5-2 on the year.
"It is a tough one to lose," head coach Eric Shore said. "They played well in doubles, but we came back and gave ourselves a shot in singles. Tim Puetz did a great job at No. 1 singles and I give Daniel Cochrane credit for fighting back and saving his match points. It's just unfortunate we couldn't close the deal on other matches."
Georgia Tech's Guillermo Gomez and Dean O'Brien defeated Auburn senior Michel Monteiro and sophomore Lucas Lopasso, 8-3, on court three. At No. 1 doubles, senior Tim Puetz and Daniel Cochrane fell to No. 18 Juan Spir and Kevin King, 8-6, to give the Yellow Jacket s the doubles point.
Junior Alex Stamchev and sophomore Andreas Mies earned a win at No. 2 doubles. The duo held off a fierce comeback from Eliot Potvin and Ryan Smith, who battled back from 5-1, before winning the match, 9-7.
Georgia Tech won the first singles match on court four as King defeated freshman Rafael Rondino, 6-2, 6-4. Auburn countered with an upset in the No. 1 spot as No. 72 Puetz frustrated No. 14 Gomez, 6-4, 6-2.
Potvin defeated No. 96 Tim Hewitt on court three, 6-3, 6-4, giving the Yellow Jackets a 3-1 lead. Georgia Tech clinched the victory when Spir came away with a three-set victory over Stamchev (6-7, 6-3, 7-5).
No. 106 Mies held off a strong charge from O'Brien and continued his undefeated season by winning in three sets (6-4, 6-7, 7-3). Cochrane battled back against Magin Ortiga to give Auburn its third and final point. The SEC Freshman of the Week lost the first set, 6-7 (3), but dug deep and won the final two sets, 7-6 (6), 6-3.
Up next for the Tigers will be the Blue Gray Classic held in Montgomery, Ala., on Feb. 25-27, before hitting the road for a pair of SEC matches. Auburn will play Georgia on March 4th and Tennessee on March 6th.
Against Georgia Tech
Singles
1. #72 Tim Puetz (AU) def. #14 Guillermo Gomez (GT); 6-4, 6-2
2. #35 Juan Spir (GT) def. Alex Stamchev (AU); 6-7 (2), 6-3, 7-5
3. Eliot Potvin (GT) def. #96 Tim Hewitt (AU); 6-3, 6-4
4. Kevin King (GT) def. Rafael Rondino (AU); 6-2, 6-4
5. Daniel Cochrane (AU) def. Magin Ortega (GT); 6-7 (3), 7-6 (6), 6-3
6. #106 Andreas Mies (AU) def. Dean O'Brien (GT); 6-4, 6-7 (8), 6-3
Doubles
1. #18 Juan Spir/Kevin King (GT) def. Tim Puetz/Daniel Cochrane (AU); 8-6
2. Alex Stamchev/Andreas Mies (AU) def. Eliot Potvin/Ryan Smith (GT); 9-7
3. Guillermo Gomez/Dean O'Brien (GT) def. Lucas Lopasso/Michel Monteiro (AU;) 8-3
Match Notes
Georgia Tech University 8-1; National ranking #15
Auburn University 5-2; National ranking #22
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (4,1,3,2,6,5)