LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – The first of six scheduled matches for the Georgia Gwinnett College men’s tennis team ended with the top-ranked Grizzlies picking up a 9-0 victory against No. 20 University of the Cumberlands (Ky.) on Monday afternoon at the GGC Tennis Facility.
GGC (11-0) extended its winning streak to 93 consecutive matches, the longest active stretch in all of intercollegiate athletics.
Senior Rafael Coutinho and junior Federico Herrera Duran won eight of 10 games at No. 2 doubles to pick up the first point of the match. That was followed by an 8-3 triumph by senior Ayed Zatar and sophomore Valentino Caratini on the No. 1 court and a victory by the team of sophomore Federico Bonacia and freshman Jose Dugo, 8-5, at No. 3 doubles — giving the home team a commanding 3-0 lead.
Caratini won all 12 games on the No. 5 singles court to sustain the positive momentum. Junior Mika Kosonen clinched the team victory with a 6-3, 6-2 win on the No. 6 court.
Bonacia won by identical 6-2 set scores on the No. 2 court, while Herrera Duran was a 6-4, 6-4 victor against Martin Barbier at No. 1 singles. Dugo capped his busy day of action with a straight-set win at No. 4 singles.
Coutinho registered a three-set win on the No. 3 court, winning all 10 points in the tiebreaker. He won the second set 6-2 to force the deciding third-set tiebreaker and complete the sweep.
Coach’s Corner
“We are back in the grind (of the season), with matches for three consecutive days and again on Sunday. Earlier rainouts have forced us to load up the March schedule. We are still trying to find the right combinations in doubles. We feel really good about our singles play and have a lot of good options for doubles. I am putting out new combinations on the court in every match. The goal is to have three really strong teams, not just one or two strong teams,” said Head Coach Chase Hodges.
Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to return to the GGC Tennis Facility to host Olivet Nazarene University (Ill.) on Tuesday, March 12, at 2 p.m.