Saturday, April 16, 2011

DeLAND, Fla. – Second-seeded ETSU captured its fifth consecutive Atlantic Sun Conference Men’s Tennis Championship title on Saturday with a hard-fought 4-2 win against the fourth-seeded and host Stetson Hatters at Mandy Stoll Tennis Center.

A-Sun All-Tournament Team honoree Sander Gille won in singles and doubles for the Bucs, who have won all five titles with finals victories against the Hatters. ETSU No. 1 singles player Grega Teraz claimed A-Sun Tournament MVP honors.

Stetson (20-10) earned the doubles point to start the nearly four-hour match as the pairs of Njal Stene/Chris Swanteson and Alex Hackett/Hans Adrian Riseng each won 8-5 to offset an 8-5 ETSU win on Court 2.

Just as they did in the semifinals against Campbell, the Bucs (16-6) shook off the loss of the doubles point. The Bucs got wins from Gille (6-0, 6-4 against Stene on Court 2), Roger Ordeig (6-1, 6-1 vs Riseng on Court 6) and Teraz (6-1, 6-0 on Court 1 against Maksim Levanovich). Stetson earned one point in singles as Didrik Berg defeatd Charles Bottoni 7-6, 2-6, 6-1 on court four. Finally, Juan Ramirez pulled out a tense 7-6, 7-5 Court 5 win against Hackett to clinch the championship.

ETSU will learn its NCAA Tournament fate during the selection show set for Tuesday, May 3 at 5:30 p.m. Fan can watch the announcement on NCAA.com.

A-SUN ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

Grega Teraz – ETSU (MVP) Sander Gille – ETSU Juan Ramirez – ETSU Cesare Gallo – Stetson Maksim Levanovich - Stetson Moritz Buerchner – UNF

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The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts five of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.