Feb. 25, 2012
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MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Auburn's 14th-ranked men's tennis team picked up two wins Saturday in the Blue-Gray National Classic, defeating No. 44 Boise State 4-1 and holding off No. 59 Cornell 4-2 at the Lagoon Tennis Center.
Auburn improved to 9-2 with the two wins and picked up its fifth and sixth wins over ranked opponents so far this year. The Tigers are now 4-1 on neutral courts this season and unbeaten (6-0) in matches played in Alabama.
"Hats off to Alex Stamchev, Lucas Lopasso and Andy Mies for just getting the job done today," Auburn head coach Eric Shore said. "We were lucky to win that first one (against Boise State). Those guys were good. They won four of six first sets, and we just kind of hung in there and found a way to win it. We can't do that against good teams. Then we sat one guy (Daniel Cochrane) against Cornell to rest him for tomorrow, then Dennis (Lengsfeld) rolls his ankle and we lose one there. We still somehow figured out a way to get it done."
In the morning's first match, which was rescheduled after rain on Friday washed out the entire day's play, the Tigers took an early 2-1 lead before Boise State pushed the Tigers to the limit. Lengsfeld got the Tigers on the board first with a 6-4, 6-0 win over Garrett Patton at the No. 4 singles position, and Alex Stamchev made it 2-0 with a win at No. 2 over Andrew Bettles, 6-4, 6-3. Boise would answer as Nathan Sereke handed Lukas Ollert his first singles loss of the season on court five, 6-4, 6-3.
The remaining three matches would head to a third set. Andreas Mies, ranked No. 23 in the nation, held off a tough challenge from No. 34 James Meredith at No. 1 singles, pulling out a 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 win to give the Tigers a 3-1 lead. Lucas Lopasso then finished off Filipp Pogostkin at No. 6 singles, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2, to clinch the victory for Auburn. Daniel Cochrane was tied 4-4 in the third set with BSU's Scott Sears when the match was halted.
Against Cornell, Auburn found itself in an early 1-0 hole when Lengsfeld was forced to retire with an injury just two games into his match with Danny Riggs at the No. 3 spot. But the Tigers would answer quickly as Mies made short work of Venkat Iyer at the No. 1 position, 6-1, 6-1. Auburn jumped into the lead as Lopasso took down Quoc-Daniel Nguyen in straight sets on court five, 6-2, 6-1, and the Tigers made it 3-1 when Ollert defeated Alex Sidney at the No. 4 spot, 6-2, 7-5.
Cornell fought back to make it 3-2 as Jason Luu beat Auburn's Rafael Rondino on court six, 6-4, 6-4. And after Stamchev dropped the first set, 7-5, to Sam Flech at No. 2 singles, he rebounded to win 12 straight games and sweep the final two sets, 6-0, 6-0, to clinch the match for Auburn.
Doubles matches were not played in any match today unless necessary for tiebreaking purposes.
The Tigers will face No. 66 Clemson on Sunday at a time to be determined, most likely in the afternoon. At the conclusion of all scheduled matches Sunday, the top two teams will play one doubles match to determine the tournament champion. Live scoring is available through bluegraytennis.com.
Auburn Men's Tennis Results
Blue-Gray National Classic - Montgomery, Ala.
February 25, 2012
#14 Auburn 4, #44 Boise State 1
Singles
1. #23 Andreas Mies (AU) def. #34 James Meredith (BSU), 4-6, 7-5, 6-3
2. Alex Stamchev (AU) def. Andrew Bettles (BSU), 6-4, 6-3
3. Daniel Cochrane (AU) vs. Scott Sears (BSU), 4-6, 6-4, 4-4 unfinished
4. Dennis Lengsfeld (AU) def. Garrett Patton (BSU), 6-4, 6-0
5. Nathan Sereke (BSU) def. Lukas Ollert (AU), 6-3, 6-4
6. Lucas Lopasso (AU) def. Filipp Pogostkin (BSU), 4-6, 7-5, 6-2
Doubles - not played
Match Notes
Auburn 8-2, National ranking #14
Boise State 7-2, National ranking #44
***************
#14 Auburn 4, #59 Cornell 2
Singles
1. #23 Andreas Mies (AU) def. Venkat Iyer (COR), 6-1, 6-1
2. Alex Stamchev (AU) def. Sam Flech (COR), 5-7, 6-0, 6-0
3. Danny Riggs (COR) def. Dennis Lengsfeld (AU), 1-1 retired
4. Lukas Ollert (AU) def. Alex Sidney (COR), 6-2, 7-5
5. Lucas Lopasso (AU) def. Quoc-Daniel Nguyen (COR), 6-2, 6-1
6. Jason Luu (COR) def. Rafael Rondino (AU), 6-4, 6-4
Doubles - not played
Match Notes
Auburn 9-2, National ranking #14
Cornell 5-7, National ranking #59