TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Senior Blake Croyder has won the singles championship at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Southeast Regional Event at Florida State University’s Scott Speicher Memorial Tennis Center on Monday morning, defeating seven-seed Antoine Cornut Chauvinc of FSU by a 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 score.
The Marietta, Ga. native is now 9-2 on the season with three wins against ranked singles opponents and versus the 2021 ITA Newcomer of the Year in Cornut Chauvinc.
“I’m so happy for Blake,” said head coach Manny Diaz. “He’s been playing extremely well all fall, but for him to win a tournament of this magnitude is a huge steppingstone and a big achievement for him. He’s been a lot more consistent, and his serve has gotten a lot better. He’s achieved a sense of confidence that he can get through some tough moments, so I’ve seen some great maturity at times peeking through, and that become very evident today. He handled a great player in a tough match, and he deserves big congratulations.”
Croyder, the field’s nine seed, defeated Florida Atlantic’s Kevin Huempfner, Miami’s Antonio Prat, Florida’s Togan Tokac, South Florida’s Erik Grevelius and FSU’s No. 13 Youcef Rihane as well as No. 7 Cornut Chauvinc en route to his singles championship.
The Bulldogs also had top-seeded Trent Bryde and Philip Henning in the doubles finals match on Monday. The tandem finished as the runners-up, dropping the final match to FAU’s Nicolas Acevedo and Filip Krolo in a 3-6, 7-6(2), 10-8 decision.
“I’m sure Trent and Philip are disappointed, losing a third set tiebreaker, but they played some great doubles all weekend long,” said Coach Diaz. “Today, we had our opportunities. We led by a set and a service break twice in the second set and could have served for the match. Just didn’t quite get the job done today, but I’m extremely proud of our progress. I’m sure they are hurting right now, but we have a lot to be proud of. I’m really excited for them and the rest of the year.”
Bryde and Henning are now 5-1 this season after their run to the doubles finals together.
By winning the singles regional championship, Croyder earns a spot in the ITA Fall Championships in San Diego, Calif., on November 3-6 in singles for the ITA Fall Championships. Bryde and Henning also clinched a spot in the doubles field after advancing to the regional finals.
The ITA Fall Championships is considered the top fall event in college tennis, with the top 32 singles players and doubles teams in the sport competing for its championship.
The field is comprised of 24 regional selections, two ITA wild cards and an ITA Cup wild card. The remaining spots in singles is for the Milwaukee Tennis Classic wild card and the four ITA All-American semifinalists. In doubles, the last spots are for ITA All-American champion and finalist and three at-large selections.
The Bulldogs had a successful weekend at the regional event in Tallahassee, with No. 3 Bryde, No. 5 Teodor Giusca and No. 9 Croyder all advancing to the third round and Giusca and Croyder making the quarterfinals in singles. In addition, Britton Johnston won his opening match in the field in a three-set battle against Miami’s No. 16 Nacho Serra Sanchez in a 7-6(4), 6-7(2), 7-6(9) result.
Giusca has continued to impress in his fall debut in the Red and Black, now standing at 7-3 in singles, including two ranked wins and three victories against seeded opponents through three tournaments. The Bucharest, Romania native’s run in the regional singles main draw came to an end in the quarterfinals against Florida State’s No. 13 Youcef Rihane in a three-set battle, which was decided by a 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 score.
“Very proud of Teodor,” said Coach Diaz. “He was just one or two points away from winning his quarterfinal match, but he showed a lot of progress this week.”
The third-seeded Bryde’s run in the singles portion of the tournament came to an end in the third round, as the senior fell to No. 14 Jonah Braswell of Florida by a 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 result. The senior had a strong outing at the regional event with wins over UNF’s Jonas Hartenstein and Central Florida’s Mehdi Benchakroun.
“We saw a great battle from Trent in the third round,” said Coach Diaz. “I’m really encouraged with his progress this fall.”
The Georgia men’s tennis team had a strong showing in the doubles draw as well, with two tandems reaching the quarterfinals in No. 1 Bryde and Henning as well as No. 2 Croyder and Johnston. The former of the two went on to finish as the field’s runner-up.
Croyder and Johnston lost their first match of the season together to the field’s 10-seed, Florida’s #10 Jonah Braswell and Lukas Greif. The seniors are now 6-1 in the fall after winning the Southern Intercollegiate Championships doubles title in September.
The doubles tournament for the ITA Regional event was played in an eight-game pro set format, with no-ad scoring and a tiebreaker at 7-7 through the quarterfinals. The semifinals and finals switched to a best-of-three sets format, with a breaker in the third set if needed.
The main draw singles matches were played in a best of three set format with no-ad scoring. The consolation draw and secondary singles group play matches were played in the same way, with the added change of a 10-point breaker for the third set.
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Bulldogs by following UGA Men’s Tennis on social media on Twitter and Instagram @UGATennis, on Facebook @UGAMensTennis and on the web at GeorgiaDogs.com.
Singles Results
Main Draw Round of 64
Britton Johnston (UGA) def. #16 Nacho Serra Sanchez (Miami) 7-6(4), 6-7(2), 7-6(9)
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Kevin Huempfner (FAU) 6-0, 6-2
No. 5 Teodor Giusca (UGA) def. Casper Christensen (Miami) 6-4, 6-0
No. 3 Trent Bryde (UGA) def. Jonas Hartenstein (UNF) 6-2, 6-1
Davide Tortora (USF) def. Thomas Paulsell (UGA) 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(10)
#7 Antoine Cornut Chauvinc (FSU) def. Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) 7-6(3), 6-4
Main Draw Round of 32
Lucas Olivier (STET) def. Britton Johnston (UGA) 6-3, 6-1
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Antonio Prat (Miami) 7-5, 6-1
No. 5 Teodor Giusca (UGA) def. Rodrigo Crespo (UNF) 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-1
No. 3 Trent Bryde (UGA) def. Mehdi Benchakroun (UCF) 4-6, 6-1, 6-3
Main Draw Round of 16
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Togan Tokac (UF) 6-4, 6-4
No. 5 Teodor Giusca (UGA) def. No. 12 Keshav Chopra (GT) 6-1, 6-4
No. 14 Jonah Braswell (UF) def. No. 3 Trent Bryde (UGA) 6-3, 2-6, 6-1
Main Draw Quarterfinals
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Erik Grevelius (USF) 6-3, 6-2
No. 13 Youcef Rihane (FSU) def. No. 5 Teodor Giusca (UGA) 2-6, 6-3, 7-5
Main Draw Semifinals
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. No. 13 Youcef Rihane (FSU) 6-1, 6-3
Main Draw Finals
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. No. 7 Antoine Cornut Chauvinc (FSU) 6-2, 1-6, 6-3
Consolation Round of 32
Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) def. Rohan Sachdev (GT) 6-1, 6-2
Thomas Paulsell (UGA) def. Juan Jose Rodriguez (STET) 6-2, 1-6, 10-7
Consolation Round of 16
Franco Aubone (UM) def. Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) 7-6(4), 1-6, 12-10
Raul Garcia (KSU) def. Thomas Paulsell (UGA) 6-4, 6-2
Secondary Singles Group Play
Filipe Costa (UGA) def. Carter Bradford (FGCU) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles Results
Round of 64
Teodor Giusca/Thomas Paulsell (UGA) def. Matthew Carroll/Bruno Vietri (UNF) 8-7(7)
Pol Del Castillo/Hudson Blair (GSU) def. Filipe Costa/Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) 8-7(5)
Round of 32
No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) def. Emilio Sanchez/Cooper White (UCF) 8-4
No. 12 Dan Martin/Juan Martin Jalif (Miami) def. Teodor Giusca/Thomas Paulsell (UGA) 8-6
No. 2 Blake Croyder/Britton Johnston (UGA) def. Edward Tymes/Diego Padhila (GAST) 8-2
Round of 16
No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) def. Max Damm/Magnus Johnson (FGCU) 8-3
No. 2 Blake Croyder/Britton Johnston (UGA) def. Casper Christensen/Martin Katz (UM) 8-4
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) def. No. 9 Alvin Tudorica/Bruno Oliveira (USF) 8-4
No. 10 Jonah Braswell/Lukas Greif (UF) def. No. 2 Blake Croyder/Britton Johnston (UGA) 8-3
Semifinals
No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) def. Pol Del Castillo/Judson Blair (GASO) 6-2, 7-6(3)
Finals
Nicolas Acevedo/Filip Krolo (FAU) def. No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) 3-6, 7-6(2), 10-8
The Marietta, Ga. native is now 9-2 on the season with three wins against ranked singles opponents and versus the 2021 ITA Newcomer of the Year in Cornut Chauvinc.
“I’m so happy for Blake,” said head coach Manny Diaz. “He’s been playing extremely well all fall, but for him to win a tournament of this magnitude is a huge steppingstone and a big achievement for him. He’s been a lot more consistent, and his serve has gotten a lot better. He’s achieved a sense of confidence that he can get through some tough moments, so I’ve seen some great maturity at times peeking through, and that become very evident today. He handled a great player in a tough match, and he deserves big congratulations.”
Croyder, the field’s nine seed, defeated Florida Atlantic’s Kevin Huempfner, Miami’s Antonio Prat, Florida’s Togan Tokac, South Florida’s Erik Grevelius and FSU’s No. 13 Youcef Rihane as well as No. 7 Cornut Chauvinc en route to his singles championship.
The Bulldogs also had top-seeded Trent Bryde and Philip Henning in the doubles finals match on Monday. The tandem finished as the runners-up, dropping the final match to FAU’s Nicolas Acevedo and Filip Krolo in a 3-6, 7-6(2), 10-8 decision.
“I’m sure Trent and Philip are disappointed, losing a third set tiebreaker, but they played some great doubles all weekend long,” said Coach Diaz. “Today, we had our opportunities. We led by a set and a service break twice in the second set and could have served for the match. Just didn’t quite get the job done today, but I’m extremely proud of our progress. I’m sure they are hurting right now, but we have a lot to be proud of. I’m really excited for them and the rest of the year.”
Bryde and Henning are now 5-1 this season after their run to the doubles finals together.
By winning the singles regional championship, Croyder earns a spot in the ITA Fall Championships in San Diego, Calif., on November 3-6 in singles for the ITA Fall Championships. Bryde and Henning also clinched a spot in the doubles field after advancing to the regional finals.
The ITA Fall Championships is considered the top fall event in college tennis, with the top 32 singles players and doubles teams in the sport competing for its championship.
The field is comprised of 24 regional selections, two ITA wild cards and an ITA Cup wild card. The remaining spots in singles is for the Milwaukee Tennis Classic wild card and the four ITA All-American semifinalists. In doubles, the last spots are for ITA All-American champion and finalist and three at-large selections.
The Bulldogs had a successful weekend at the regional event in Tallahassee, with No. 3 Bryde, No. 5 Teodor Giusca and No. 9 Croyder all advancing to the third round and Giusca and Croyder making the quarterfinals in singles. In addition, Britton Johnston won his opening match in the field in a three-set battle against Miami’s No. 16 Nacho Serra Sanchez in a 7-6(4), 6-7(2), 7-6(9) result.
Giusca has continued to impress in his fall debut in the Red and Black, now standing at 7-3 in singles, including two ranked wins and three victories against seeded opponents through three tournaments. The Bucharest, Romania native’s run in the regional singles main draw came to an end in the quarterfinals against Florida State’s No. 13 Youcef Rihane in a three-set battle, which was decided by a 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 score.
“Very proud of Teodor,” said Coach Diaz. “He was just one or two points away from winning his quarterfinal match, but he showed a lot of progress this week.”
The third-seeded Bryde’s run in the singles portion of the tournament came to an end in the third round, as the senior fell to No. 14 Jonah Braswell of Florida by a 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 result. The senior had a strong outing at the regional event with wins over UNF’s Jonas Hartenstein and Central Florida’s Mehdi Benchakroun.
“We saw a great battle from Trent in the third round,” said Coach Diaz. “I’m really encouraged with his progress this fall.”
The Georgia men’s tennis team had a strong showing in the doubles draw as well, with two tandems reaching the quarterfinals in No. 1 Bryde and Henning as well as No. 2 Croyder and Johnston. The former of the two went on to finish as the field’s runner-up.
Croyder and Johnston lost their first match of the season together to the field’s 10-seed, Florida’s #10 Jonah Braswell and Lukas Greif. The seniors are now 6-1 in the fall after winning the Southern Intercollegiate Championships doubles title in September.
The doubles tournament for the ITA Regional event was played in an eight-game pro set format, with no-ad scoring and a tiebreaker at 7-7 through the quarterfinals. The semifinals and finals switched to a best-of-three sets format, with a breaker in the third set if needed.
The main draw singles matches were played in a best of three set format with no-ad scoring. The consolation draw and secondary singles group play matches were played in the same way, with the added change of a 10-point breaker for the third set.
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Bulldogs by following UGA Men’s Tennis on social media on Twitter and Instagram @UGATennis, on Facebook @UGAMensTennis and on the web at GeorgiaDogs.com.
Singles Results
Main Draw Round of 64
Britton Johnston (UGA) def. #16 Nacho Serra Sanchez (Miami) 7-6(4), 6-7(2), 7-6(9)
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Kevin Huempfner (FAU) 6-0, 6-2
No. 5 Teodor Giusca (UGA) def. Casper Christensen (Miami) 6-4, 6-0
No. 3 Trent Bryde (UGA) def. Jonas Hartenstein (UNF) 6-2, 6-1
Davide Tortora (USF) def. Thomas Paulsell (UGA) 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(10)
#7 Antoine Cornut Chauvinc (FSU) def. Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) 7-6(3), 6-4
Main Draw Round of 32
Lucas Olivier (STET) def. Britton Johnston (UGA) 6-3, 6-1
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Antonio Prat (Miami) 7-5, 6-1
No. 5 Teodor Giusca (UGA) def. Rodrigo Crespo (UNF) 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-1
No. 3 Trent Bryde (UGA) def. Mehdi Benchakroun (UCF) 4-6, 6-1, 6-3
Main Draw Round of 16
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Togan Tokac (UF) 6-4, 6-4
No. 5 Teodor Giusca (UGA) def. No. 12 Keshav Chopra (GT) 6-1, 6-4
No. 14 Jonah Braswell (UF) def. No. 3 Trent Bryde (UGA) 6-3, 2-6, 6-1
Main Draw Quarterfinals
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. Erik Grevelius (USF) 6-3, 6-2
No. 13 Youcef Rihane (FSU) def. No. 5 Teodor Giusca (UGA) 2-6, 6-3, 7-5
Main Draw Semifinals
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. No. 13 Youcef Rihane (FSU) 6-1, 6-3
Main Draw Finals
No. 9 Blake Croyder (UGA) def. No. 7 Antoine Cornut Chauvinc (FSU) 6-2, 1-6, 6-3
Consolation Round of 32
Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) def. Rohan Sachdev (GT) 6-1, 6-2
Thomas Paulsell (UGA) def. Juan Jose Rodriguez (STET) 6-2, 1-6, 10-7
Consolation Round of 16
Franco Aubone (UM) def. Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) 7-6(4), 1-6, 12-10
Raul Garcia (KSU) def. Thomas Paulsell (UGA) 6-4, 6-2
Secondary Singles Group Play
Filipe Costa (UGA) def. Carter Bradford (FGCU) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles Results
Round of 64
Teodor Giusca/Thomas Paulsell (UGA) def. Matthew Carroll/Bruno Vietri (UNF) 8-7(7)
Pol Del Castillo/Hudson Blair (GSU) def. Filipe Costa/Miguel Perez Peña (UGA) 8-7(5)
Round of 32
No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) def. Emilio Sanchez/Cooper White (UCF) 8-4
No. 12 Dan Martin/Juan Martin Jalif (Miami) def. Teodor Giusca/Thomas Paulsell (UGA) 8-6
No. 2 Blake Croyder/Britton Johnston (UGA) def. Edward Tymes/Diego Padhila (GAST) 8-2
Round of 16
No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) def. Max Damm/Magnus Johnson (FGCU) 8-3
No. 2 Blake Croyder/Britton Johnston (UGA) def. Casper Christensen/Martin Katz (UM) 8-4
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) def. No. 9 Alvin Tudorica/Bruno Oliveira (USF) 8-4
No. 10 Jonah Braswell/Lukas Greif (UF) def. No. 2 Blake Croyder/Britton Johnston (UGA) 8-3
Semifinals
No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) def. Pol Del Castillo/Judson Blair (GASO) 6-2, 7-6(3)
Finals
Nicolas Acevedo/Filip Krolo (FAU) def. No. 1 Trent Bryde/Philip Henning (UGA) 3-6, 7-6(2), 10-8