Waco - The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's tennis team had
quite a day at the Baylor HEB Invitational on Friday. Playing in
one of the toughest individual tournaments in the nation, the
Islanders downed teams from Texas and Texas A&M in the A draw,
the top flight of the tournament.
In singles action, Dmitry Novikov beat Marcus Lunt from Texas
A&M. Lunt is a senior for the Aggies and one of the top
returning players from an Aggies team that made it to the round of
16 at the NCAA Tennis Championships last season. The Aggies ended
the season ranked #14 in the nation.
In a three-set match that saw Novikov fight through dehydration
and cramping as the match wore on, the Islanders top player took
down the Lunt in a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 final that gave TAMUCC its second
big victory of the day.
"The top flight at this tournament is the toughest fall draw in
the country so I'm very proud of these guys," said Director of
Tennis Steve Moore. "I think it is a result of their hard work and
practice."
In the other match, it was Novikov once again, teaming up with
James Langford in the doubles A draw to take on Alex Hilliard and
Chris Camillone of Texas, a team that finished #9 in the nation
last year and reached the Final Four of the NCAA Championships
before losing to eventual National Champion Southern
California.
Novikov and Langford won the doubles A draw last week at the
Islander Open and continued the momentum by downing the team from
Texas by a 8-1 final.
"Dmitry Novikov really showed what he is capable of today in
singles and doubles," said Moore. "I think our team represented the
Islanders pretty well at this tournament."
In other action, Nathan Robinson won his first round match
against Brett Proctor of Abilene Christian by a 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 final
to advance to the second round of the singles B draw. Alex Pavlov
also played in the singles B draw, losing a match to James
Seagraves of Tulsa by a 6-3, 7-5 final. Andrew Maingot received a
bye in the first round of the B draw and was scheduled to take on
Brievo Hamon of UT Arlington in the second round.
Langford also came close to another huge upset as he took Atilla
Bucko of Baylor to the full three sets before falling by a 4-6,
6-0, 6-2 final. Bucko plays for the host Bears that is
consistently one of the top teams in the country and finished the
season ranked #7 in the nation last season. The Bears lost in the
Elite Eight of the NCAA Championships to national runner-up Ohio
State who finished the season ranked #2 in the nation.
This tournament will be the final fall event the Islander men's
team competes in until they conclude the fall season late next
month as they take part in the NCAA Region VI Regional in College
Station on the campus of Texas A&M. The Aggies host the
regional from October 24-27.
For full results, fans can visit the tournament website at: HEB
Baylor Men's Invitational
