April 10, 2011

UNCG (14-5, 7-2 SoCon) vs. Furman (6-15, 4-3 SoCon), April 11, 2:30 p.m., UNCG Tennis Courts, Senior Day

Storylines

• UNCG will try to rebound from its worst loss of the season when it hosts Furman on Monday for its final match of the regular season. The contest will also serve as Senior Day for seniors Andrew Clark and Yaroslav Litus.

• Clark and Litus comprise a senior class that has seen the Spartans go from worst to first in the Southern Conference. UNCG went 3-20 overall and 1-8 in the SoCon in 2008, then improved to 15-8 overall and 7-3 in the league in 2009, good for third place in the SoCon standings. Last season, the Spartans completed their ascent to the top, spending much of the regular season in first place and winning the SoCon tournament to clinch the school's first-ever NCAA bid. That run has continued into this season, as UNCG has spent several weeks atop the league standings this year, as well.

• The Spartans fell 7-0 at College of Charleston on Saturday in a battle of the top two teams in the Southern Conference standings. UNCG entered that contest alone atop the league standings but finds itself in third after CofC and Elon both won Saturday to jump the Spartans for first place.

• The 7-0 defeat was UNCG's worst of the season, supplanting a trio of 6-1 losses. Orcun Seyrek and Timion Meijs picked up UNCG's lone win of the day, winning at No. 1 doubles.

• UNCG's hopes for a regular-season SoCon title took a serious hit Saturday but were not dashed completely. At 7-2 in league play, the Spartans could still tie for the league title if they were to beat Furman and Elon and CofC were to lose their remaining SoCon matches. Those squads are both 8-1 in SoCon play after winning Sunday and finish their respective seasons Thursday.

• The Spartans bring a seven-match home winning streak into Monday's contest, with their lone home loss of the season coming in the form of a 6-1 setback to Campbell on Feb. 18. That loss snapped a 15-match home winning streak, meaning UNCG has won 22 of its last 23 at home.

• Seyrek has twice been named the SoCon Player of the Week this season, taking the award on March 9 and again on March 22.

• Overall this season, UNCG is 15-4 at No. 6 singles, 13-6 at No. 5 and 12-7 at No. 4. In SoCon play, UNCG is 7-2 at Nos. 3 and 4.

• A pair of true freshmen lead UNCG in singles wins on the year. Ahmet Sarioglu is 21-9 overall and 14-5 in dual action, including a 7-2 mark in SoCon play. Chanon Varapongsittikul is 13-6 in dual play and 20-10 overall on the season.

• Seyrek, UNCG's No. 1 singles player, is 11-8 in duals and 19-10 overall. Litus is 11-8 in duals and 17-11 overall, including a 6-2 mark in conference play. Redshirt freshman Zach Reece is 8-3 in duals and 16-7 overall. Meijs is 15-11 overall on the season and 11-8 in dual action, while Jacob Wright is 7-7 overall and 4-4 in dual action.

• In doubles play, Litus and Wright are 15-8 overall and 10-7 in duals. Meijs and Seyrek sport a 7-5 mark together, while Sarioglu and Varapongsittikul are 8-6.

• UNCG and Furman have faced each twice in each of the last two seasons. In 2009, Furman swept a pair of contests from the Spartans, winning 6-1 in the regular season and 4-0 in the second round of the SoCon tournament. UNCG gained a measure of revenge last season, finishing the regular season with a 5-2 loss to the Paladins but evening the score a week later in the first round of the SoCon tournament with a 4-1 victory.

• Furman has won three straight contests, all in league play. The Paladins picked up 4-3 wins over Wofford and Appalachian State, then crushed Chattanooga 7-0 on Saturday. The Paladins lost their first 10 matches of the season, but seven of those came against teams ranked in the top 75. Overall this season, eight of Furman's 15 losses have come to ranked teams.

• Andrew Mellow leads Furman with a 10-10 singles record on the year, including a 5-2 mark in SoCon play. Mellow plays primarily at No. 2 and has won his last three matches. Sawyer Duncan (9-11) and Joel Cook (9-8) are tied for second on the team in singles wins. Duncan has played each match at No. 1, while Cook has played Nos. 2, 5 and 6, seeing the bulk of his action at 6.

• Duncan and Mellow are 8-10 as a doubles tandem, seeing all of their action at No. 1. Alex Christ and Cook are 7-9 together and have played Nos. 2 and 3.

- UNCG -