Golden Eagles unwrap OVC play with home opener against Belmont
There is no easing into the home opener for the Tennessee Tech tennis team.
By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – There is no easing into the home opener for the Tennessee Tech tennis team. In fact, it is quite the opposite come Saturday afternoon for the purple and gold.
The Golden Eagles will start their Cookeville slate with a bang, welcoming in the defending regular-season OVC champion Belmont Bruins to Tech Tennis Courts for a Saturday matinee at noon CT. And although the Bruins (7-8) bested the Golden Eagles for last year's regular-season crown, on the season's final day no less, Tech struck for revenge when it mattered most with a thrilling 4-3 triumph over Belmont in last year's OVC Tournament championship match in Nashville.
The title, which was clinched on a Riku Kubota three-set singles victory out of the No. 5 position, was Tech's third consecutive OVC Tournament championship, resulting in the program's third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament.
This year's Golden Eagles (4-11) will finally be making their home debut after weather has wreaked its fair share of havoc in TTU's ability to play in Cookeville. Originally scheduled to unwrap the home ledger with two matches in three days against Lipscomb (Mar. 1) and Troy (Mar. 3), mother nature had other plans, causing changes in both contests. The get-together with Troy was cancelled, while the affair with Lispcomb was postponed to this Monday, Mar. 25.
Admission to Tech Tennis Courts is free of charge.
Tech enters the home opener after a narrow 4-3 loss in the club's last match Wednesday at Kennesaw State. The tilt with the Owls served as TTU's first contest in 11 days and did feature stellar production out of squad's rookies. Freshmen Rafael Tosetto and Elias Grubert each claimed singles victories and the pair of first-year players also teamed up to capture a doubles nod that helped the Golden Eagles secure the doubles point.
Tosetto's win marked the fifth this season for the Jacarei, Brazil product, all of which have occurred from the vaunted No. 1 spot in the Tech singles lineup. Sophomore Gonzalo Garcia and senior Wenceslao Albin lead the team with six singles wins apiece.
Tosetto is Tech's doubles leader with an 8-4 mark this season, while Albin has also flourished with a 7-4 record.
A look at Belmont
It has been a seesaw kind of a season for the Bruins so far, first starting the year with a 4-1 record, before faltering in seven straight matches. Belmont has rebounded though of late with wins in three consecutive, including a 4-3 nod over Georgia Southern in the club's last match on Mar. 16.
Junior Hendrik Inno and sophomore Marko Ilic pace the squad with identical 8-5 singles records, both out of the top two slots in the Bruin order. Inno is 7-5 out of the No. 1 position, while Ilic has posted a 7-3 record out of the No. 2 spot. The duo has also proven to be Belmont's best doubles tandem with a club-leading 9-3 mark, all out of the top position in the lineup.
Tech leads the all-time series 17-9 over the Bruins and has captured five of the last 6 meetings, including last season's dramatic OVC Tournament championship match.
Photo by Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
