ECU Men's Tennis Opens Season With Three Wins
January 21, 2006 | Men's Tennis
Jan. 21, 2006
RICHMOND, Va. - The East Carolina men's tennis squad opened its spring season by coasting to three victories at the Virginia Commonwealth 4-1 Invitational Friday and Saturday at the Thalhimer Tennis Center.
The Pirates captured 10 of 12 singles matches and all three doubles points in wins against Georgetown (4-1), Drexel (5-0) and Temple (4-1) while four newcomers to the ECU program turned in impressive debuts.
Sophomore Ricardo Barone picked up three straight singles triumphs while freshman Aleksey Kochetov earned two singles victories and teamed with fellow rookie Britton Steele for a convincing 6-0, 6-2 doubles win against Drexel.
Freshman Brian Walters partnered with Steele and senior Nick Rose for a pair of doubles victories while also tallying a singles win at the No. 4 spot against Drexel's Ayusha Wadhwan. Henrique Viana, one of only two returning lettermen on ECU's 2006 squad, logged three wins which included a grueling 6-2, 5-7, 10-4 decision over Temple's Milan Juricka during Saturday's last match.
"It's certainly a great start to the season, especially considering that prior to Friday, we only had two players with collegiate dual match experience at the Division I level," East Carolina Head Coach Shawn Heinchon said. "It's a long year but I hope it bodes well for the remainder of the season."
East Carolina will return to action next Saturday when it travels to Wake Forest for a 3:00 p.m. match against the Demon Deacons.
EAST CAROLINA 4, GEORGETOWN 1
Singles Play
No. 1 - Aleksey Kochetov (ECU) def. Scott Maucher (GU); 7-5, 6-2
No. 2 - Henrique Viana (ECU) def. Andy Clayton (GU); 6-2, 6-3
No. 3 - Ricardo Barone (ECU) def. Scott Faust (GU); 6-3, 6-0
No. 4 - Ken Wong (GU) def. Britton Steele (ECU); 6-0, 6-2
Doubles Play
No. 1 - Nick Rose/Brian Walters (ECU) def. Eric Conrad/Kevin Walsh (GU); 6-3, 6-2
EAST CAROLINA 5, DREXEL 0
Singles Play
No. 1 - Henrique Viana (ECU) def. Carlo Pagilinan (DU); 6-4, 6-4
No. 2 - Nick Rose (ECU) def. Joey Koebele (DU); 6-4, 6-2
No. 3 - Ricardo Barone (ECU) def. Pasquale Cardone (DU);6-1, 6-0
No. 4 - Brian Walters (ECU) def. Ayushya Wadhwan (DU); 6-2, 6-1
Doubles Play
No. 1 - Aleksey Kochetov/Britton Steele (ECU) def. Michael Keefe/Ben Trabin (DU); 6-0, 6-2
EAST CAROLINA 4, TEMPLE 1
Singles Play
No. 1 - Aleksey Kochetov (ECU) def. Eduardo Saavedra (TU); 6-2, 6-1
No. 2 - Henrique Viana (ECU) def. Milan Juricka (TU); 6-2, 5-7, 10-4
No. 3 - Daniel Davis (TU) def. Nick Rose (ECU); 7-5, 6-4
No. 4 - Ricardo Barone (ECU) def. Matt Struble (TU); 6-3, 6-2
Doubles Play
No. 1 - Britton Steele/Brian Walters (ECU) def. Phillip Gegenheimer/Jon Sy (TU); 6-2, 6-3
Team Record: East Carolina 3-0
