Florida Gators
ITA Southeast Regional Championship
Men's Tennis Rolls Along at Wilson/ITA Southeast Regional Championships
Sunday, October 25, 2009 | Men's Tennis
The Florida men's tennis team continued play at the 2009 Wilson/ITA Southeast Regional Championship hosted by the University of Georgia at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Ga., on Saturday as UF's junior Alexandre Lacroix (Paris, France) and junior Johnny Hamui (Wesley Chapel) each earned a berth in the singles quarterfinals while Lacroix and redshirt senior Antoine Benneteau (Boulogne-Billancourt, France) advanced to the doubles semifinals.
Lacroix and Benneteau teamed up to score an 8-4 victory over Georgia's Christian Vitulli and Borja Malo in the doubles quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Hamui and senior Dan Cash (Oslo, Norway) fell in their doubles quarterfinal, 8-4, at the hands of Nate Schnugg and Jamie Hunt, also from the University of Georgia.
No. 23 Lacroix and No. 117 Hamui each won a pair singles matches to advance to the quarterfinals, while Benneteau won his second-round match with Georgia's Borja Malo before succumbing to Georgia Tech's Guillermo Gomez, the No. 5 player in the nation, in a marathon three-set battle, 6-1, 6-7(11), 7-6(9).
Lacroix took a three-set match from Georgia Tech's Dean O'Brien, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 before downing Georgia's Christian Vitulli in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4. Hamui defeated Georgia Tech's Ryan Smith 7-5, 6-2 in the second round and dispatched Miami's 79th-rated Carl Sundberg, the tournament's No. 8 seed, in three sets, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Lacroix's record now sits at 9-1 this fall, while Hamui sports a 6-3 mark.
Cash, sophomore No. 11 Carlos Cueto (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain) and freshman Billy Federhofer (North Miami) each fell in their respective second-round matchups. Cueto was appearing in his first event of the fall season as he battles back from injury.
After his tilt with Benneteau, Gomez will face a Gator for a second-straight match as Hamui awaits in the quarterfinals. Lacroix will take on No. 115 Vahid Marizadeh of Florida State. Both matches are slated for a 10 a.m. start on Sunday. The time of Benneteau and Lacroix's doubles semifinal is to be determined.
2009 Wilson/ITA Southeast Regional Championship – Saturday Results (UF only)
Doubles
Quarterfinals
Schnugg/Hunt (Georgia) def. Hamui/Cash (UF) – 8-4
Benneteau/Lacroix (UF) def. Vitulli/Malo (Georgia) – 8-4
Singles
Round of 32
(107) Antoine Benneteau (UF) def. Borja Malo (Georgia) – 6-2, 6-4
Vahid Mirzadeh (Florida State) def. Dan Cash (UF) – 6-3, 6-2
Juan Spir (Georgia Tech) def. (11) Carlos Cueto (UF) – 6-3, 7-6(7)
(38) Javier Garrapiz (Georgia) def. Billy Federhofer (UF) – 6-0, 6-1
(117) Johnny Hamui (UF) def. Ryan Smith (Georgia Tech) – 7-5, 6-2
(23) Alexandre Lacroix (UF) def. Dean O'Brien (Georgia Tech) – 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
Round of 16
(5) Guillermo Gomez (Georgia Tech) def. (107) Antoine Benneteau (UF) – 6-1, 6-7(11), 7-6(9)
(117) Johnny Hamui (UF) def. (79) Carl Sundberg (Miami) – 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
(23) Alexandre Lacroix (UF) def. Christian Vitulli (Georgia) – 6-2, 6-4
Sunday Schedule (UF Only)
Doubles – Semifinals
Time TBA
Benneteau/Lacroix (UF) vs. Bernstein/Garrapiz (Georgia)
Doubles finals*
Singles – Quarterfinals
10 a.m.
(23) Alexandre Lacroix (UF) vs. (115) Vahid Marizadeh (Florida State)
(117) Johnny Hamui (UF) vs. (5) Guillermo Gomez (Georgia Tech)
Monday Schedule
Time TBA – Singles Finals
Time TBA – Doubles Finals*
All times subject to change; *Doubles finals could be played Sunday or Monday
-UF-
