ETSU Wins Second Straight Men's Tennis Title

#1 ETSU 4, #3 Furman 0

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The top-seeded ETSU men’s tennis squad repeated as Southern Conference champions on Sunday, earning a 4-0 shutout win over No. 3 seed Furman in the 2016 SoCon Tennis Championship at the Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tenn. The Bucs earned the SoCon’s automatic berth to the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championships with the victory.

For the third consecutive match during the tournament, ETSU took the doubles point and began the match with a 1-0 lead.  Diego Nunez and Robert Herrera took a 6-2 decision at No. 2 over Alex Steryous and Cameron Green. ETSU's top pair of Rogerio Ribeiro and David Biosca claimed a 6-4 win over Matt Browne and Ben Horst, and the Bucs’ Sebastian Yllera and Ismael Merino polished off a 6-4 win on court three nearly simultaneously to give the Bucs the early advantage.

Nunez got the Bucs started in singles with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Browne on court three, and Merino extended the ETSU advantage to 3-0 with a 6-2, 6-2 defeat of Steryous at No. 6. Ribeiro then provided the match-clincher at No. 2, downing Green in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.  

Ribeiro, a redshirt senior from Sao Paulo, Brazil, was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.

Sunday’s title marked ETSU’s ninth men’s tennis tournament championship in program history. That is tied with former member Davidson for third all-time.

The Bucs will now await the NCAA tournament bracket announcement, which is slated for Tuesday, May 3, at 5:30 p.m. (EST).