BEAUMONT, Texas – After several rain delays, the No. 60 nationally-ranked Islanders men's tennis team (18-6) topped No. 4 seed Nicholls, 4-1, tonight in the semifinals of the Southland Conference Tournament at the Beaumont Municipal Tennis Center. The Islanders advance to the finals for the third consecutive year and will face No. 2 seed Lamar on Sunday at 2 p.m.
"Give a lot of credit to Nicholls, they really came out and played like a team that's on a mission," Director of Tennis Steve Moore said. "Some senior guys that are big hitters, these conditions were good for hitting big. I thought our guys showed good toughness, resiliency and great character.
"This is our time. We believe it's our elements and conditions. We just have to make a few smart adjustments and we have to be ready to battle tomorrow. I can't tell you how much I believe in these guys, their fitness, their character, and I can't tell you how much I am looking forward to tomorrow."
The Islanders came out strong and secured the doubles point over the Colonels (9-10) with wins on courts one and two. The Second Team All-Conference duo of Kevin Bettendroffer and Guillaume Rauseo downed Kieran Cronin and Bernard Wezeman, 8-3, at No. 2 doubles to improve to 9-3 on the year. The freshman-senior pair of Arthur Bedel and Peter Nagy then teamed up for an 8-5 win over Lukas Clemens and Sam Meessen at No. 1 doubles. The First Team All-Conference tandem improves to 8-4 with their third straight win.
A&M - Corpus Christi carried over its momentum into singles play as Nagy and Bettendroffer padded the Islanders lead to 3-0 with straight-set singles wins. Nagy, the three-time Southland Conference Player of the Year and the No. 101 ranked singles player in the nation, cruised to a 6-2, 6-2 win over Clemens at No. 1 singles to secure his sixth consecutive win. He is now just one career win shy of matching Associate Head Coach Goncalo Figueiredo's program-best 67 wins. This season he has registered an impressive 18-2 record in the No. 1 slot.
Bettendroffer then followed suit with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Partha Adavelly at No. 2 singles to make it a 3-0 lead for the Islanders. The sophomore garnered his ninth consecutive match to improve to 14-4 in the No. 2 spot.
Nicholls tacked on its first point of the match at No. 5 singles after Meessen defeated junior Javier Pujol, 6-4, 6-4. However, moments later Rauseo clinched the match with a 6-4, 6-2 straight-set win over Evan Karatzas at No. 4 singles.
The Islanders will now face Lamar who defeated New Orleans, 4-1, in the other semifinal match tonight. Last season, the Islanders faced the Cardinals in the championship match and secured a 4-1 win. Earlier this season, the Islanders garnered a 5-2 win in Corpus Christi. Nagy, Bettendroffer, Pujol, Ricardo Mayagoitia and Paul Cook all won their singles matches in straight sets.
The Islanders clinched the No. 1 seed in the tournament after securing their eighth consecutive Southland Conference regular-season title with a 5-0 record. A&M - Corpus Christi is seeking its sixth appearance in the NCAAs in the last eight years and their third consecutive trip. The Islanders who were ranked as high as No. 40 in the ITA Division I rankings this season, only allowed five points in Southland play this season, for a season record of 26-5. The Islanders have won 18 consecutive regular-season conference matches in four years and in the last eight years the Islanders have registered a 41-2 record in the Southland.
Admission is free for all matches and for more information on the tournament click HERE.
For all the latest on Islanders Tennis, like the team on Facebook (IslandersTennis) and follow them on Twitter and Instagram (@IslandersTennis). Fans can also receive updates on both teams by downloading the Islanders Front Row App at GoIslanders.com/frontrow.
Tennis Match Results
Nicholls vs. Texas A&M - Corpus Christi
4/25/2015 at Beaumont, Texas
#60 Texas A&M - Corpus Christi 4, Nicholls 1
Singles competition
1. #101 Peter Nagy (AMCC) def. Lukas Clemens (NICM) 6-2, 6-2
2. Kevin Bettendroffer (AMCC) def. Partha Adavelly (NICM) 6-3, 6-4
3. Ricardo Mayagoitia (AMCC) vs. Bernard Wezeman (NICM) 6-1, 3-6, 3-4, unfinished
4. Guillaume Rauseo (AMCC) def. Evan Karatzas (NICM) 6-4, 6-2
5. Sam Meessen (NICM) def. Javier Pujol (AMCC) 6-4, 6-4
6. Paul Cook (AMCC) vs. Max Sinn (NICM) 3-6, 6-2, 0-1, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. Peter Nagy/Arthur Bedel (AMCC) def. Lukas Clemens/Sam Meessen (NICM) 8-5
2. Guillaume Rauseo/Kevin Bettendroffer (AMCC) def. Kieran Cronin/Bernard Wezeman (NICM) 8-3
3. Ricardo Mayagoitia/Paul Cook (AMCC) vs. Partha Adavelly/Evan Karatzas (NICM) 7-7, unfinished
Match Notes:
Nicholls 9-10
Texas A&M - Corpus Christi 18-6; National ranking #60
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (1,2,5,4)
Match one of the Southland Conference Tournament
Texas A&M Corpus Christi - 1 seed
Nicholls - 4 seed
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi advances to the 2015 SLC Championship match
