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Baylor Men's Tennis powers past No. 12 Georgia in ITA Kick-Off Opener

Posted at 4:26 PM, Jan 26, 2019
and last updated 2019-01-26 17:26:44-05

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Baylor men’s tennis (4-0) captured its first ranked win of the season with a 4-2 triumph over No. 12 Georgia in the opening round of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend Saturday at the Varsity Tennis Center in Ann Arbor, Mich.

The Bears improved to 17-0 all-time in ITA Kick-Off Weekend matches and advanced to Sunday’s championship match for the ninth time. BU will face host and 24th-ranked Michigan for a spot at the ITA National Indoor Team Championships at noon CT.

In doubles play, the Bears had the early advantage after Johannes Schretter and Jimmy Bendeck teamed up for a 6-3 victory over Walker Duncan and Philip Henning at the No. 2 spot. With the Bears down 6-5 on court three, Roy Smith and Sven Lah clinched the doubles point with a 6-3 win over 51st-ranked Robert Loeb and Jan Zielinski to put Baylor up 1-0.

In singles action, the Bears and Bulldogs (0-1) split the opening sets with BU winning all three at the bottom half of the lineup. Lah topped Walker Duncan, 6-2, 6-2, at the No. 5 spot while No. 105 Frantzen captured a tough 7-6(10), 7-6(2) win over Blake Croyder on court six to give Baylor a 3-0 lead.

Georgia would come back and score the next two points as Smith dropped a 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 decision to 15th-ranked Emil Reinberg at the No. 1 spot, and then 33rd-ranked Schretter fell 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to No. 2 Jan Zielinski on court two.

With Baylor up 3-2, Matias Soto clinched the match with a 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 victory over Philip Henning on court four.