FLORENCE, Ala. (April 12, 2024) – The University of North Alabama men's tennis team secured a berth in the Atlantic Sun Conference Championships on Friday with a 7-0 sweep of Austin Peay at the UNA Tennis Complex.
The program-record season continued for the Lions, as they clinched their second-straight conference tournament bid and third overall of the Division I era. UNA won two of three doubles matches and all six singles matches in a dominant display.
Speaking of display, the UNA tennis program unveiled the new Clyde "Sappo" Black Family Scoreboard prior to the women's tennis match Friday morning. A number of community members joined UNA Athletics for the special pre-game ceremony.
The Lions improved to 14-7 overall and 5-3 in the ASUN. North Alabama has now won its previous six home duals to move to 6-1 in home play.
Six Lions added to their win tally with four winning both their singles and doubles matches. Freshmen
Alberto Altur and
Birtan Duran, sophomore
Federico Scotuzzi and junior
Nazar Fedoryshyn won both singles and doubles contests, while freshman
Izan Orgiles and sophomore
Lachlan Brain were victorious in singles play.
Fedoryshyn and Duran began doubles with a 6-1 first-flight win over Austin Peay's Sota Minami and Aeneas Schaub. The Govs picked up their lone win of the dual with a court two victory, but Altur and Scotuzzi's 6-4 win from court three won the Lions the doubles point. Both UNA wins marked the first for the pairings on the season.
North Alabama won four of the six singles courts in straight sets with two coming down to super tiebreakers in the third set. Orgiles grabbed the first win in singles with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Giovanni Becchis from flight two. Scotuzzi capped a 2-0 day with a 6-1, 6-2 triumph from court six over Glen Arnet.
Altur earned his sixth victory of the season with a fourth-flight 6-1, 6-3 win over Tom Bolten. Duran had to work in the first set of his match, but the Istanbul, Turkey native prevailed over Aeneas Schaub from flight three, 7-5, 6-2.
Fedoryshyn stayed hot for his fourth-straight singles after coming back from an early deficit. The junior was narrowly defeated in the first set, 7-6, before battling back for a solid 6-3 win in the second frame. Fedoryshyn took the victory via supertiebreak, clinching the match over Javier Tortajada Bautista with a hard-fought 6-7, 6-3, 1-0 final score. The tiebreaker finished at 10-3.
The final match saw Brain battling with Austin Peay's Sota Minami, with the two needing a third set to decide a winner. The sophomore from Adelaide, Australia secured the first season sweep of an ASUN opponent with a 6-4, 6-7, 1-0 win via a 10-6 tiebreaker.
UNA looks on to Bellarmine on Sunday, April 14 in a postseason tune up for the final home dual of the regular season. First serve from the UNA Tennis Complex is scheduled for 3 p.m.
North Alabama 7, Austin Peay 0
Doubles
1.
Nazar Fedoryshyn/
Birtan Duran (UNA) def. Sota Minami/Aeneas Schaub (APSU), 6-1
2. Giovanni Becchis/Tom Bolton (APSU) def.
Izan Orgiles/
Lachlan Brain (UNA), 6-4
3.
Alberto Altur/
Federico Scotuzzi (UNA) def. Javier Tortajada Bautista/Bodi Van Galen (APSU), 6-4
Singles
1.
Lachlan Brain (UNA)def. Sota Minami (APSU), 6-4, 6(5)-7(7), 1(10)-0(6)
2.
Izan Orgiles (UNA) def. Giovanni Becchis (APSU), 6-1, 6-0
3.
Birtan Duran (UNA) def. Aeneas Schaub (APSU), 7-5, 6-2
4.
Alberto Altur (UNA) def. Tom Bolton (APSU), 6-1, 6-3
5.
Nazar Fedoryshyn (UNA) def. Javier Tortajada Bautista (APSU), 6(2)-7(7), 6-3, 1(10)-0(3)
6.
Federico Scotuzzi (UNA) def. Glen Arnet (APSU), 6-1, 6-2
Match Notes
North Alabama 14-7
Austin Peay 5-12
Order of Completion: Doubles (1,3,2) Singles (2,6,4,3,5,1)
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
