Men's tennis heads to Winthrop to start four-match road swing
UNCG (3-4) vs. Winthrop (3-6), March 1, 1 p.m., Rock Hill, S.C.
Storylines
- UNCG's men's tennis team heads to Rock Hill, S.C., on Thursday to take on Winthrop to kick off a four-match road swing.
- The Spartans snapped a two-match losing streak last time out, topping Belmont 4-3 at the Piedmont Indoor Tennis Center on Friday. UNCG swept the doubles point then got singles wins from Orcun Seyrek at No. 1, Chanon Varapongsittikul at No. 3 and Cameron Smith at No. 5.
- Seyrek is ranked 11th in singles in the Carolinas Region by the ITA. A three-time All-Southern Conference selection, Seyrek was 20-11 in singles last year, marking his third straight season with 20+ singles wins.
- Sophomore Ahmet Sarioglu leads the team in singles wins with a 10-6 mark on the young season and is 4-3 in dual play. Seyrek (7-7) and freshman Randy Phillips (7-9) are second on the squad in wins. In doubles play, Phillips and Varapongsittikul are 7-5 together (3-4 dual at No. 2), while Sarioglu and Seyrek are 6-5 with a 4-3 dual mark at No. 1.
- Winthrop is 3-6 on the season, with its 4-3 win over USC Upstate on Saturday snapping a six-match losing streak. The Eagles opened their season with a 7-0 win over USC Lancaster and a 5-2 win over Wofford on Jan. 27.
- Four of the Eagles' losses this season have come against ranked opponents. VCU and Wake Forest were both ranked No. 42 at the time, UNCW was No. 46 and Georgia State was No. 70.
- Thursday's match against UNCG starts a four-match homestand for Winthrop.
- Dylan Comerford leads Winthrop with a 5-3 singles record, including a 2-0 mark at No. 3 singles and a 1-0 mark at No. 5. Yuta Hirokawa and Guy Kubi are 4-5 each.
- In doubles play, Comerford and Rich Meade are 4-4 together with a 2-4 mark at No. 2 and a 2-0 record at No. 3. Hirokawa and Dejon Bivens are 2-0 together at No. 2.
- UNCG and Winthrop both took part in the USTA/ITA Carolinas Regional Championships in Chapel Hill, N.C., on Oct. 13-16. In the only match that involved both teams, UNCG's Seyrek topped Bivens, 6-4, 7-5.
- Up next for the Spartans after Winthrop, UNCG opens Southern Conference play at Georgia Southern on Sunday.
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