NCAA Mens Tennis

Three Former Illini Grab Wins in ATP Challenger

Three Former Illini Grab Wins in ATP Challenger


CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Former Illini Aleks Kovacevic, Zeke Clark and Aleks Vukic all collected wins in the fourth day of the Paine Schwartz partners $50,000 USTA Challenger on Nov. 16 at Atkins Tennis Center. 

Kovacevic picked up his third win of the tournament over United States’ Ernesto Escobedo in a 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 battle. In doubles play, Kovacevic and  partner Ben Shelton defeated India’s Sathi Reddy Chirala and N Vijay Sundar Prashanth 6-2, 6-1. 

Clark and doubles partner Alfredo Perez defeated Germany’s Sebastian Fanselow and Lucas Gerch in a two-set sweep, 6-1, 6-4. 

Vukic defeated his opponent, United States’ Patrick Kypson, 6-4, 6-2. 

Two sets of current Illini played in doubles as well – junior Hunter Heck and redshirt junior Lucas Horve, and graduate student Oliver Okonkwo and sophomore Mathis Debru. Both lost their matches – Heck and Horve fell to India’s N.Sriram Balaji and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan, 3-6, 6-2, 10-7 while Okonkwo and Debru lost to Alex Lawson and the Treat Huey, 6-3-6-4. 

Only Clark and Kovacevic will play tomorrow in doubles play. Clark and Perez will go against Lawson and Huey at approximately 5 p.m. while Kovacevic and Shelton will play Theo Arribage of France and Luke Johnson of Great Britain. 

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