Sunday, February 8
Norfolk, Va.
10:00 am
Radford University
5
at
2
Old Dominion University
Sayer Hits Milestone; No. 67 Men’s Tennis Concludes Tidewater Trip with 5-2 Win over ODU
2/8/2009 5:47:21 PM | Men's Tennis
NORFOLK, Va. – Martin Sayer (Hong Kong/Sagemont Virtual School) added to his already impressive resume recording his 100th career singles victory and No. 67 Radford won its fourth straight with a 5-2 decision over Old Dominion in men's tennis action Sunday at the Folkes-Stevens Indoor Tennis Center.
The Highlanders improve to 6-1 on the season, while ODU falls to 7-5.
"Today's match was very difficult for us,” said Radford head coach Mike Anderson. “ODU not only played tough tennis, but their fans were very noisy giving them a great deal of home-court advantage.”
Sayer, the three-time Big South Player of the Year, moved to 6-1 on the young season in singles play and to 100-23 in his career with a straight-set triumph over Aleksandr Seleznev at the top spot. To go along with his impressive singles record, Sayer teamed with Zack Watson (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) in the first doubles match to collect his 56th career doubles win and give the Highlanders an early 1-0 lead in the match.
The duo of Ivan Salec (Oroslavje, Croatia / Oroslavje Secondary School) and Mehdi Benhammou (Rabat, Morocco / Descartes) also won their tilt by an 8-6 margin in the second-seeded match for Radford. The Highlanders have claimed the crucial doubles point in six of their seven matches this season.
Prior to Sayer putting the team one point away from the victory, Salec gave Radford its first singles point with a 6-3, 7-6 (5) defeat of Tobias Fanselow.
Freshman Stefan Bojic (Novi Sad, Serbia) clinched the dual for the Highlanders with a come-from-behind win over Alex Funkhouser (5-7, 6-1, 6-4) on the fourth court. With the match already in hand, Watson rallied from four down in the second to give Radford its final point in singles with a 6-4, 7-6 decision and keep his perfect record.
“Stefan Bojic really stepped up for us today at No. 4 singles, clinching the match for us after coming back from a set down."
The Highlanders will enjoy a lengthy break before continuing their 13-match schedule away from home to begin the season with a Feb. 21 match up with conference rival Winthrop in Rock Hill, S.C.
Radford 5, Old Dominion 2
Norfolk, Va. -- Folkes-Stevens Indoor Tennis Center
Doubles Competition
1. Martin Sayer/Zack Watson (RU) def. Aleksandr Seleznev/Tobias Fanselow (ODU) 8-6
2. Ivan Salec/Mehdi Benhammou (RU) def. Matt Fawcett/Ben Marks (ODU) 8-6
3. Yakov Diskin/Alex Funkhouser (ODU) def. Igor Ogrizek/Stefan Bojic (RU) 8-6
Singles Competition
1. Sayer (RU) def. Seleznev (ODU) 7-5,7-5
2. Salec (RU) def. Fanselow (ODU) 6-3, 7-6(5)
3. Diskin (ODU) def. Benhammou(RU) 6-3, 7-5
4. Bojic (RU) def. Funkhouser (ODU) 5-7, 6-1, 6-4
5. Fawcett (ODU) def. Ogrizek (RU) 6-1, 4-6, 7-5
6. Watson (RU) def. Krzysztof Muzalewski (ODU) 6-4, 7-6
The Highlanders improve to 6-1 on the season, while ODU falls to 7-5.
"Today's match was very difficult for us,” said Radford head coach Mike Anderson. “ODU not only played tough tennis, but their fans were very noisy giving them a great deal of home-court advantage.”
Sayer, the three-time Big South Player of the Year, moved to 6-1 on the young season in singles play and to 100-23 in his career with a straight-set triumph over Aleksandr Seleznev at the top spot. To go along with his impressive singles record, Sayer teamed with Zack Watson (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) in the first doubles match to collect his 56th career doubles win and give the Highlanders an early 1-0 lead in the match.
The duo of Ivan Salec (Oroslavje, Croatia / Oroslavje Secondary School) and Mehdi Benhammou (Rabat, Morocco / Descartes) also won their tilt by an 8-6 margin in the second-seeded match for Radford. The Highlanders have claimed the crucial doubles point in six of their seven matches this season.
Prior to Sayer putting the team one point away from the victory, Salec gave Radford its first singles point with a 6-3, 7-6 (5) defeat of Tobias Fanselow.
Freshman Stefan Bojic (Novi Sad, Serbia) clinched the dual for the Highlanders with a come-from-behind win over Alex Funkhouser (5-7, 6-1, 6-4) on the fourth court. With the match already in hand, Watson rallied from four down in the second to give Radford its final point in singles with a 6-4, 7-6 decision and keep his perfect record.
“Stefan Bojic really stepped up for us today at No. 4 singles, clinching the match for us after coming back from a set down."
The Highlanders will enjoy a lengthy break before continuing their 13-match schedule away from home to begin the season with a Feb. 21 match up with conference rival Winthrop in Rock Hill, S.C.
Radford 5, Old Dominion 2
Norfolk, Va. -- Folkes-Stevens Indoor Tennis Center
Doubles Competition
1. Martin Sayer/Zack Watson (RU) def. Aleksandr Seleznev/Tobias Fanselow (ODU) 8-6
2. Ivan Salec/Mehdi Benhammou (RU) def. Matt Fawcett/Ben Marks (ODU) 8-6
3. Yakov Diskin/Alex Funkhouser (ODU) def. Igor Ogrizek/Stefan Bojic (RU) 8-6
Singles Competition
1. Sayer (RU) def. Seleznev (ODU) 7-5,7-5
2. Salec (RU) def. Fanselow (ODU) 6-3, 7-6(5)
3. Diskin (ODU) def. Benhammou(RU) 6-3, 7-5
4. Bojic (RU) def. Funkhouser (ODU) 5-7, 6-1, 6-4
5. Fawcett (ODU) def. Ogrizek (RU) 6-1, 4-6, 7-5
6. Watson (RU) def. Krzysztof Muzalewski (ODU) 6-4, 7-6
Thursday, April 23
Sunday, April 12
Thursday, April 02
Saturday, March 21
