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Commodore Co-Champions: Dailey, Harris Share SEC Indoor Crown 1/20/2004
Commodore Co-Champions: Dailey, Harris Share SEC Indoor Crown NASHVILLE, TENN. — Vanderbilt men’s tennis seniors Zach Dailey and Chad Harris have decided to forego a championship match in favor of sharing the title of Southeastern Conference Coaches’ Indoor Singles Champion. Dailey and Harris advanced through opposing halves of the tournament’s main draw at the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Facility in Athens, Ga., this past weekend, but returned to Nashville instead of playing an championship final, originally scheduled for Monday. “I’m not sure it makes sense to play that match,” Flach said. “The last thing we want to do is have someone get hurt in that kind of a match. Both of these guys played so hard all week. I’m so proud of the way they played and I think it is fitting to honor both of them.” Dailey, ranked No. 45 by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association and seeded ninth in the tournament, won four matches in three days on his way to the tournament championship. The Memphis, Tenn., native defeated three ranked players during his run. Harris, ranked No. 55 by the ITA and seeded 13th, left five players in his wake during his three days in Athens. The Aurora, Colo., product defeated three of the nation’s top-50 players. The entire Vanderbilt squad made a strong showing at the event. Four Commodores advanced to the tournament’s round of 16. No other SEC school had more than two representatives go that far. The doubles team of Dailey and senior Lewis Smith also won a pair of matches to make a quarterfinal appearance on Sunday. The pair of Commodores successfully defended the tournament championship which former Commodore Bobby Reynolds claimed a year ago on his way to a No. 1 ITA ranking. The title marked the second of the season in Athens for Vanderbilt, following junior Matt Lockin’s September victory in the Southern Intercollegiate Championships. Athens also was the site where the Commodores reached the finals of the 2003 NCAA Championship, and the 2004 NCAA Championship will again be hosted there. The Commodores open their 2004 dual-match season at home against Tennessee Tech on Friday, Jan. 23, with a 2 p.m. match at the Brownlee O. Currey Jr. Tennis Center. Vanderbilt earned a No. 3 pre-season team ranking from the ITA, its highest ranking in school history. Agate: No. 45 Zach Dailey Round of 64 — Bye. Round of 32 — 6-4, 6-2, over No. 81 Evan Austin of Kentucky Round of 16 — 6-1, 6-0, over Cory Ross of LSU Quarterfinals — 7-6 (8), 6-4, over No. 70 Paul Ciorascu of Ole Miss Semifinals — 6-0, 5-7, 6-3, over No. 58 Tigran Martirosyan of Kentucky No. 55 Chad Harris Round of 64 — 6-2, 6-1, over Kiril Tcherveniachki of Tennessee Round of 32 — 6-3, 6-3, over Stefan Tell of Florida Round of 16 — 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, over No. 16 Jesse Witten of Kentucky Quarterfinals — 6-4, 6-3, over No. 49 Claes Lindholm of Ole Miss Semifinals — 6-0, 7-5, over No. 24 Hamid Mirzadeh of Florida — VU — 1/18 – Commodores Crash Athens: Dailey, Harris Both Reach SEC Indoor Singles’ FinalMen’s tennis seniors may share championship title. ATHENS, GA. – For the second straight year, the SEC Coaches Indoor Championships’ singles title will belong to a member of the Vanderbilt men’s tennis team – make that two members of the Vanderbilt men’s tennis team. Commodore seniors Zach Dailey and Chad Harris both advanced through Sunday’s quarterfinal and semifinal rounds to set up a potential all-Vanderbilt final Monday. The pair will not play that match at the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Facility, the tournament’s home in Athens, but will return to Nashville and evaluate the possibility of playing the match later this week. Vanderbilt Head Coach Ken Flach says that a more likely outcome will see Dailey and Harris sharing the title of co-champions. “I’m not sure it makes sense to play that match,” Flach said. “The last thing we want to do is build any sort of animosity on our team. And both of these guys have played so hard all week. I’m just so proud of the way they played – it would be fitting to honor them both.” Dailey, the nation’s 45th-ranked player, has been quite busy in Athens. On Sunday morning, he defeated 16th-seeded Paul Ciorascu of Ole Miss, 7-6 (8), 6-4. In the afternoon’s semifinal round, the ninth-seeded Dailey took out 14th-seeded Tigran Martirosyan of Kentucky, 6-0, 5-7, 6-3. Add to that a Sunday evening matchup in the doubles quarterfinals, where Dailey and Vanderbilt senior Lewis Smith, seeded fourth, saw their tournament run end (an 8-3 loss to Pelva/Schweizer of Auburn), and one can understand the Memphis native’s need for a break. Harris, ranked No. 55 nationally by the ITA and seeded 13th at the tournament, defeated 11th-seeded Claes Lindholm of Ole Miss, 6-4, 6-3, on Sunday morning. He returned in the afternoon to take care of fifth-seeded Hamid Mirzadeh of Florida, 6-0, 7-5. In three days, Harris won five matches and defeated three of the nation’s top 50 players while dropping only a single set (in a tiebreaker to No. 16 Jesse Witten). “This weekend I have seen incredible effort from our entire team,” Flach said. “All of the top players from the SEC were here, and there were so many tight matches. Our guys showed the kind of character that we saw all last season – they were fighting and scrapping and just playing great, great tennis. I’m very proud of this whole team.” Vanderbilt’s Bobby Reynolds won the SEC Coaches Indoor Championship a year ago on his way to a No. 1 national ranking. Athens, Ga., also was the site of the 2003 NCAA Championships, where the Commodore reached the final match, and the 2003 Southern Intercollegiate Championship, won by VU junior Matt Lockin. Complete results from this weekend’s action are available at georgiadogs.com. The Commodores open their 2004 dual-match season on Friday, Jan. 23, with a 2 p.m. match against Tennessee Tech at the Brownlee O. Currey Jr. Tennis Center in Nashville. Vanderbilt earned a No. 3 pre-season team ranking from the ITA, its highest ranking ever. — VU — 1/17 Dailey and Harris Advance to Quarterfinals Vanderbilt seniors Zach Dailey and Chad Harris advanced to the quarterfinals of the SEC Coaches Men’s Indoor Tennis Championships with wins on Saturday, Jan. 17, in Athens, Ga. The quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of the tournament are scheduled for Sunday. Dailey defeated Louisiana State’s Cory Ross in straight sets, 6-0, 6-1, in the round’s shortest match. Harris was engaged in a longer battle with Kentucky’s Jesse Witten, but came out on the positive side of a 6-7, 6-4, 6-3 decision. The SEC Coaches Indoor Championship continues through Monday, when singles and doubles champions will be crowned. The Commodores are looking to keep the singles title, won last year by Vanderbilt’s Bobby Reynolds, in Nashville. 1/16 — Vanderbilt Men Win Five On Friday Four members of the Vanderbilt men’s tennis team have made it to the Round of 16 in the main draw of the SEC Coaches Indoor Championship in Athens, Ga. Seniors Zach Dailey and Chad Harris, as well as juniors Scott Brown and Matt Lockin, used straight-sets victories on Friday to advance. On Friday, 13th-seeded Harris, the No. 55 player in the country, had to win two matches. In first round action, he defeated Kiril Tcherveniachki of Tennessee, 6-2, 6-1. Harris returned in the afternoon session to take care of Florida’s Stefan Tell, 6-3, 6-3. The remaining Commodores were seeded high enough in the tournament to receive a bye through the first round. Dailey, the tournament’s ninth seed and the No. 45 player in the nation, defeated Kentucky’s Evan Austin, 6-4, 6-2. Lockin, seeded sixth in the draw and ranked No. 27 nationally, defeated Jose-Carlos Pinto of Mississippi State by a count of 6-1, 6-3. No. 46 Brown, the 10th-seed, faced the toughest challenge of the day, but was able to ward off Kentucky Nate Emge in straight-sets, 7-5, 6-4. All four Commodores will be in action tomorrow for the round of 16, which begins at 9 a.m. ET. Brown will face Mississippi State’s Romain Ambert, the No. 4 player in the country on Saturday morning. Harris is scheduled to play Kentucky’s Jesse Witten, ranked No. 16 by the ITA. Opponents for Dailey and Lockin are yet to be determined, with late matches still going on the Round of 32. The doubles draw also is scheduled to begin on Saturday. Dailey and fellow-senior Lewis Smith, ranked No. 45 as a tandem, are the fourth seed in the tournament, and will face Mississippi State’s Fomine and Provenzano on Saturday afternoon. Brown and Harris will team up to take on Alabama’s Green and McIvey in other action that day. The SEC Coaches Indoor Championship continues through Monday, when singles and doubles champions will be crowned. The Commodores are looking to keep the singles title, won last year by Vanderbilt’s Bobby Reynolds, in Nashville. The tournament’s host site, Athens, has been good to Vanderbilt of late. In May, the Commodores advanced to the NCAA Finals, and in September, junior Matt Lockin won the Southern Intercollegiate Championship. — VU — |
