ATHENS, Ga. – The 39th-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores defeated the No. 34 Minnesota Golden Gophers, 7-0 in the consolation match of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend (Georgia Regional) at the Lindsey Hopkins Indoor Facility.
With the win, Vanderbilt (2-2) snaps a two-match losing streak, while Minnesota dropped to 1-2 on the season.
The Commodores started the day on a positive note, as they won the doubles point to take a 1-0 lead heading into singles play. Gonzales Austin and Suresh Eswaran defeated Mathieu Froment and Brendan Ruddock in the No. 2 position, 8-5. The Vandy duo is now 3-1 this spring. The win also clinched the doubles point for Vanderbilt.
In the No. 3 spot, Jeff Offerdahl and Rhys Johnson registered a win over Eric Frueh and Jack Hamburg, 8-6. Offerdahl and Johnson went 2-0 over the two days in doubles.
Ryan Lipman and Marc van der Merwe fell in the No. 1 match to Juan Pablo Ramirez and Leandro Toledo, 8-5.
Johnson then began singles play with a win over Minnesota’s Ruben Weber in the No. 3 spot, 6-2, 6-4. The win made Johnson 2-0 in singles action over the weekend.
No. 20 Austin then gave the Commodores a 3-0 lead after his win in the No. 2 position. Austin defeated Ramirez, 6-1, 6-4, to move his overall singles record to 12-4 on the season.
In the No. 1 singles match, No. 17 Lipman sealed the victory for Vanderbilt with his win over No. 63 (Leandro) Toledo, 7-6, 6-4. Lipman had to battle back in the first set as he was down two games early on in the match.
After dropping the first set, 3-6, van der Merwe bounced back to win the next two sets, 6-1, 6-3, to win the No. 4 position match versus the Gophers’ Hamburg. No. 119 Kris Yee recorded another win for Vanderbilt, as he defeated Freuh, 6-3, 7-6. Jeff Offerdahl finished the match with a comeback three-set win, 6-7(3), 6-3, 1-0(10-4).
The Commodores return home for a dual match versus Middle Tennessee State on Feb. 1, at the Currey Tennis Center.
Singles Results
1. No. 17 Ryan Lipman (Vanderbilt) def. No. 63 Leandro Toledo (Minn.) 7-6(2), 6-4
2. No. 20 Gonzales Austin (Vanderbilt) def. Juan Pablo Ramirez (Minn.) 6-1, 6-4
3. Rhys Johnson (Vanderbilt) def. Ruben Weber (Minnesota) 6-2, 6-4
4. Marc van der Merwe (Vanderbilt) def. Jack Hamburg (Minnesota) 3-6, 6-1, 6-3
5. Jeff Offerdahl (Vanderbilt) def. Brendan Ruddock (Minnesota) 6-7(3), 6-3, 1-0(10-4)
6. No. 119 Kris Yee (Vanderbilt) def. Eric Frueh (Minnesota) 6-3, 7-6(2)
Doubles Results
1. Ramirez/Toledo (Minnesota) def. Lipman/van der Merwe (Vanderbilt) 8-5
2. Austin/Eswaran (Vanderbilt) def. Froment/Ruddock (Minnesota) 8-5
3. Offerdahl/Johnson (Vanderbilt) def. Frueh/Hamburg (Minnesota) 8-6
