The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
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UCF
UAB Men's Tennis Team Advances At C-USA Championships
4/20/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
April 20, 2007
HOUSTON, Texas ----- Senior Kruno Despotovski capped off a dramatic UAB comeback victory with a clinching win at No. 4 singles as the Blazer men's tennis team edged UCF here Friday, 4-3, in the opening round of the Conference USA Championships.
The Blazers (13-7), the fourth seed in the tournament, now advance to Saturday's semifinal round to face top-seeded and No. 21-ranked Tulsa, a 4-0 first-round winner over No. 8 seed East Carolina. UAB's semifinal match Saturday is scheduled to start at 11:00 a.m. CT.
Despotovski's hard-fought, 7-6, 6-3 win over UCF's Norman Alcantara sealed the victory for UAB and also helped avenge a 6-1 loss at the hands of the Golden Knights earlier this season in Orlando.
"It was a very exciting and satisfying match," said Blazers' head coach Derek Tarr. "I think that the difference today (from the earlier match with UCF) was that our guys just wanted it more. We got off to a slow start in doubles, but we fought back just as we have all year. UCF is a very talented and deep team."
Despotovski battled to win a tight first-set tie-breaker (7-4) and then jumped to a 3-0 lead in the second set over Alcantara with an early break. But Alcantara broke back to even the set at 3-3. After taking a 4-3 lead by holding serve, Despotovski then broke the UCF player's serve in the eighth game to take a 5-3 lead. He captured the match with a brilliant running forehand that caught the edge of the sideline for match point.
"That was a great shot by Kruno," said Tarr. "It was great to see him, our only senior, step up and come through like that."
Things started a little sluggishly for the Blazers in the match that commenced at 8:00. The fifth-seeded Golden Knights won the doubles point in relative easy fashion with wins at the No. 1 and 3 positions. Alcantara teamed with Tarek Ben Soltane at No. 1 to defeat UAB's tandem of Despotovski and Adrian Tollstam. UCF had already won at the No. 3 doubles spot as Jimmy Roesch and Sinan Sudas claimed an 8-1 victory over Alex Emery and Thomas Weiss.
The No. 2 match between the UAB duo of Tim Bauer and Johannes Spangenberg, and UCF's Johan Beigart and Ener Gursoy, was suspended with the score tied at 4-4.
UAB quickly tied the match with a 6-3, 6-3 win at No. 2 singles by Spangenberg over Ben Soltane. The Blazers took a 2-1 advantage moments later when freshman Thomas Petrich claimed a 6-1, 6-0 victory over the Knights' Brock Sakey at the No. 6 position. The win improved Petrich's record in dual matches to 14-6 this spring.
UCF tied the match at No. 1 singles as Sudas won in straight sets over UAB's Thomas Weiss, 6-4, 6-3. Freshman Alex Emery improved his dual record to 14-6 as he recorded his 31st singles win overall, defeating Gursoy by a 7-6 (2), 6-3 score to give the Blazers a 3-2 lead. The lead was short-lived, however, as UCF's Beigart knotted the match at 3-3 with his three-set win (7-5, 2-6, 6-2) win at No. 3 singles over Blazer freshman Tim Bauer.
That outcome set up the deciding match at No. 4 singles between Despotovski and Alcantara.
The tournament, which runs through Sunday, is being held at the Jake Hess Tennis Stadium on the cmapus of Rice University. The winner of the tournament will receive an automatic berth in the 2007 NCAA Championships.
2007 Conference USA Championships
April 20, 2007 at Houston, TX
First Round Match
UAB 4, UCF 3
Doubles
1. Norman Alcantara/Tarek Ben Soltane (UCF) def. Kruno Despotovski/Adrian Tollstam (UAB) 8-4
2. Tim Bauer/Hanns Spangenberg (UAB) vs. Ener Gursoy/Johan Beigart (UCF) 4-4, unfinished
3. Sinan Sudas/Jimmy Roesch (UCF) def. Alex Emery/Thomas Weiss (UAB) 8-1
Singles
1. Sinan Sudas (UCF) def. Thomas Weiss (UAB) 6-4, 6-3
2. Johannes Spangenberg (UAB) def. Tarek Ben Soltane (UCF) 6-3, 6-3
3. Johan Beigart (UCF) def. Tim Bauer (UAB) 7-5, 2-6, 6-2
4. Kruno Despotovski (UAB) def. Norman Alcantara (UCF) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
5. Alex Emery (UAB) def. Ener Gursoy (UCF) 7-6 (7-2), 6-3
6. Thomas Petrich (UAB) def. Brock Sakey (UCF) 6-1, 6-0
Records: UAB 13-7; UCF 12-12
Players Mentioned
