KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Sophomore Jeremie Casabon and junior Joubert Klopper each won their singles matches at the ITA Ohio Valley Regionals on Saturday and will represent the Vanderbilt men’s tennis team in the quarterfinals Sunday.
Casabon won his fourth match of the tournament with a straight sets victory over Ian Cruz of Belmont. The 83rd-ranked singles player in the nation, Casabon won the opening set 6-3 and then closed out the match in a second-set tiebreaker, 7-6. He will play Shunsuke Mitsui (Tennessee) at 8 a.m. CT Sunday for a spot in the semifinals at 11 a.m.
Klopper moved on with a victory over Matthew Fung (Louisville). Klopper took the opening set in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (3), and then put the finishing touches on the match with a decisive second-set win, 6-2. He will take on Gabriel Diallo (Kentucky), who ranks 13th in the nation in singles, in the quarterfinals at 8 a.m. Sunday.
A pair of Commodores lost to ranked singles opponents. Fifth-year senior George Harwell fell to 109th-ranked Stijn Slump (Middle Tennessee), 6-4, 6-1, while Macsen Sisam jumped out to an early first-set lead, but fell 6-4, 6-0 to No. 105 Francois Musitelli (Kentucky).
In doubles play, Siim Troost and freshman Michael Ross kept their tournament run alive with an 8-4 win over Haskins/Vukovic (Indiana), but fell to the nation’s No. 5 doubles team of Cutting/Stevenson (Memphis), 8-5. Meanwhile, Mercer/Lapadat (Kentucky) defeated No. 19 Harwell/Freeman, 8-2.
Regional doubles and singles champions and finalists qualify for the ITA National Fall Championships, which will take place in San Diego, California, beginning on Nov. 4.
Following the ITA Regionals, the Commodores will compete at the ITA All-American Championships, in which Harwell, Freeman and Ferreira were selected to compete. The ITA All-American Championships will be hosted by the University of Tulsa on Oct. 4-10. A full Fall schedule is here.
Stay updated with the Commodores as they compete in the ITA Regionals by following @VandyMTennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Vanderbilt Results – Main Draw
Singles
Klopper def. Matthew Fung (Louisville), 7-6 (3), 6-2
#83 Casabon def. Ian Cruz (Belmont), 6-3, 7-6
#105 Francois Musitelli (Kentucky) def. Sisam, 6-4, 6-0
#109 Stijn Slump (MTSU) def. #42 Harwell, 6-4, 6-1
Doubles
Troost/Ross def. Haskins/Vukovic (Indiana), 8-5
#5 Cutting/Stevenson (Memphis) def. Troost/Ross, 8-5
Mercer/Lapadat (Kentucky) def. #19 Harwell/Freeman, 8-2
