Tech makes showing at Southern Intercollegiate Championships
Two athletes represented Tech well as they competed amongst the top schools in the nation this weekend at the Southern Intercollegiate Championships. Josh Girling and Justin Kirstein each captured wins for Tech in singles play.
ATHENS, GA. --- Two athletes represented Tech well as they competed amongst the top schools in the nation this weekend at the Southern Intercollegiate Championships at the University of Georgia. Josh Girling made it to the Round of 16 after topping off the sixth seed in the first singles division, and Justin Kirstein also captured a win for Tech in division II singles.
Girling, who now holds a 9-2 singles record this fall, kicked
off the tournament with a win over Micheal Pereira from UNCW, 7-5,
2-6, 6-4. Then, when Girling met up with sixth seed, Christian
Blocker from Miami the following round, he viewed it as
more than a challenge, but an opportunity for him to rise
above the challenge, and with a 6-3, 6-0 victory, he
succeeded.
"It was a big win for me," Girling said. "I really wanted to win
because it was my chance of beating a ranked player."
Girling fell in the following round to another top player from
Georgia, but is looking ahead to earn a ranking for himself.
He hopes to get another ranked win at this year's ITA Ohio
Valley Regional which would most likely earn him a spot on the
Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) national rankings
list.
"All I know is I've just got to keep winning," Girling said. With
his success this fall in the UNCG Invitational and the IU
Invitational, he proves to have a good chance of
recieving national recognition.
Kirstein felt good about his tournament results after opening
Friday with a first round win over Allan Donald from Wofford, 6-2,
6-3.
"It was a great tournament," said Kirstein, who lost a hard-fought
battle in the second round to Vanderbilt, 3-6, 6-1, 4-6. "I had
chances at 3-2 in the third to take advantage. It all came
down to a couple of points in the end."
Kirstein, who played in the second singles division, said
he felt he competed well and was proud of how he played
overall.
"These are the top players in the country," he said. "I am happy to
be able to represent Tech at this tournament, it was an overall
good experience."
The two also competed in Division I doubles and fell in the
first round to UNCW.
"We came back from 5-1 but just couldn't capture it in the end,"
Kirstein said.
Coach Kenny Doyle was impressed with the show of his two
players this weekend.
"Josh did very well, it was a good performance," he
said.
Doyle has been impressed with the way Girling has been playing in
these first fall tournaments and in practice lately. He was also
proud of Justin's fight in his matches.
"He had chances in the second match, it just came down to a few points, but he fought hard like he always does," Doyle said.
Doyle will be taking players next weekend to Chattanooga for the UTC Fall Classic.
