Several Firebird Men’s Tennis Players Advance After Day 1 of ITA East Regional
PHILADELPHIA, PA – Several members of the University of the District of Columbia men's tennis team advanced after Day 1 of the ITA East Regional Championship, hosted by Holy Family University.
Senior Aleksandar Grabovac (Psychology – Ljubljana, Slovenia/Gimnazija Euro Sola Ljubljana), a No. 7 seed in the Men's A Singles bracket, advanced to the third round after a first round bye and a hard-fought, comeback win (3-6, 6-3, 10-8) over Concordia's Ricardo Frey in the Rd. of 32.
In the Men's B Singles bracket, both junior Carlos Quiroga (Electrical Engineering – Valencia, Venezuela/Maria Montessori) and freshman Fabian Patrutescu (Business Management – Timisoara, Romania/L.P.S. Banatul Timisoara) also advanced to the third round. Quiroga first defeated Chestnut Hill's Manuel Ceniceros, 8-6 in the Rd. of 64 and then eased past USciences' Will Metz, 8-2. Patrutescu cruised past Philadelphia University's Matt Germani, 8-0 and then earned an 8-1 victory over Adelphi's Richard Ferguson.
Quiroga also teamed up with junior Miguel Uzcategui (Electrical Engineering – Valencia, Venezuela/Colegio Sagrado Corazon) to advance to the 3rd round of the Men's B Doubles bracket. The duo dominated a doubles pair from PhilaU, 8-1 in the Rd. of 32 and then beat a team from Adelphia, 8-4.
Grabovac and sophomore Simon Andersson (Business Management – Ystad, Sweden/Sydskanska Gymnasiet), a No. 2 seed in the Men's A Doubles bracket, were knocked out in the 2nd round after a 1st round bye. Junior Ike Kiro (Business Management – Milnerton Ridge, South Africa/NJIT) and Patrutescu fell in the Rd. of 32.
Andersson and Uzcategui each won their 1st round singles match in the Men's A Singles bracket, but each were ousted in the second round. Kiro was bounced in the first round by Merrimack's Matt Pronesti, 6-3, 6-1.
The Firebirds are back in action tomorrow for more ITA East Regional action in Philadelphia.