TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The Vanderbilt men’s tennis team advanced two pairs of Dores to the final rounds at the SEC Challenge hosted by Alabama.
The duo of Nathan Cox and Michael Ross opened their White draw semifinals match against Florida’s Henry Jefferson and Bradley Paliska with an 8-4 doubles victory. Jefferson evened the score at 1-1 for the Gators moments later, downing Cox 7-5, 7-5. With a trip to the finals on the line, Ross answered with a dominant 6-1, 6-1 win over Paliska, pushing the Commodores to a Sunday matchup against Oklahoma.
In the Houndstooth draw, the new-look pairing of Tighe Brunetti and Giuseppe Cerasuolo continued their momentum from yesterday. Vanderbilt took the doubles matchup 8-4 over Florida ahead of the singles split. Brunetti fell to the Gators’ Mattia Akcan 7-5, 6-3 in straight sets ahead of Cerasuolo against Francesco Cordova. Cerasuolo picked up his first collegiate singles victory, overcoming Cordova 6-4, 6-2 to seal a ticket to the final round.
The team of Hugo Coquelin and Henry Ruger, competing in the Crimson draw, met their match against Alabama’s Andrii Zimnokh and Roan Jones. The Crimson Tide began the match with an 8-4 doubles victory. Alabama quickly closed the door soon after, with Zimnokh defeating Ruger 6-2, 6-1 and Jones taking down Coquelin 3-6, 6-0, 6-4 to advance. Coquelin and Ruger look to bounce back in the third-place match against Auburn opponents on Sunday.
On the other side of the White draw, the freshman combination of Dylan Charlap and Callum Markowitz took the court after losing their opening-round match. The two battled against Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes and Marshall Landry of Mississippi State for a fifth-place match appearance. Vanderbilt took the doubles contest 8-5 to open the match. Guimaraes bested Charlap in a back-and-forth matchup, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3. With the score tied 1-1, Markowitz pulled off a straight-sets victory over Landry 6-0, 6-4 for a fifth-place opportunity against Alabama opponents.
The final round of the SEC Challenge begins tomorrow at 9 a.m. CT. Cox and Ross face Oklahoma’s Oscar Lacides and Bruno Nhavene on Court 4 in the White draw finals. Brunetti and Cerasuolo match up against Auburn’s Thomas Kennedy and Joey Phillips on Court 6 in the Houndstooth draw finals.
The updated tournament bracket is available online.