May 10, 2008

Knoxville -- The eighth-seeded Tennessee men’s tennis team defeated Furman 4-0 Saturday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA tournament in Knoxville, Tenn., to advance to the second round.

UT (22-3) got off to a fast start in doubles with wins at the No. 1 and 2 positions to take the early 1-0 lead. Kaden Hensel and J.P. Smith won 8-4 over Andy Juc and Chris Motes at the No. 1 position to improve to 19-4 this season at the top spot in the lineup. Davey Sandgren and Jeremy Tweedt held off Bo Ladyman and Jordan Walters, 8-6 at the No. 2 position to clinch the point.

The doubles point has been crucial to Tennessee’s success this season. The Vols are now 20-0 when they win the point and 2-3 if they drop the point.

UT continued its strong play in singles as the Vols won the first set in all six matches.

Smith capture Tennessee’s first singles victory with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Ladyman at the No. 2 position. Smith, the SEC freshman of the year, is 28-8 this season in singles.

Sandgren put the Vols up 3-0 with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Motes at the No. 4 position. The UT sophomore has won four of his last six singles matches and now has a 20-20 singles record overall.

Matteo Fago clinched the win for UT with a straight-set win over Jordan Walters at the No. 5 position. Fago, a member of the All-SEC freshman team, has won 15 of his last 16 matches.

Furman ends the season with a 16-11 record.

The Vols will play the winner of Kentucky and Virginia Tech in the second round Sunday at 2 p.m.

No. 8 Tennessee 4, No. 69 Furman 0
Singles
1. No. 35 Kaden Hensel (UT) led Andy Juc (Fur) 6-3, 2-1 DNF
2. No. 24 J.P. Smith (UT) def. Bo Ladyman (Fur) 6-1, 6-0
3. No. 93 Boris Conkic (UT) led Daniel Knause (Fur) 6-1, 4-3 DNF
4. Davey Sandgren (UT) def. Chris Motes (Fur) 6-1, 6-2
5. Matteo Fago (UT) def. Jordan Walters (Fur) 6-2, 6-1
6. Jeremy Tweedt (UT) led Sawyer Duncan (Fur) 6-2, 4-2 DNF
Order of Finish: 2,4,5
Doubles
1. No. 4 Hensel/Smith (UT) def. Juc/Motes (Fur) 8-4
2. Sandgren/Tweedt (UT) def. Ladyman/Walters (Fur) 8-6
3. Conkic/Fago (UT) def. Chvetsov/Rhyne (Fur) 7-4
Order of Finish: 1,2

(utsports.com)