On Thursday, Vanderbilt played Florida in the second round of the SEC Men’s Tennis Championship. Vanderbilt took the early lead in doubles play when Joubert Klopper/Michael Ross defeated No. 69 Tanapatt Nirundorn/Adhithya Ganesan, 6-2. Vanderbilt’s Jeremie Casabon/Nathan Cox pulled off the upset and beat No. 23 Nate Bonetto/Aidan Kim 6-4, securing the double’s point for the Commodores. Vanderbilt’s Danil Panarin/Hugo Coquelin and Florida’s Kevin Edengren/Jeremy Jin were tied 4-4 when the double’s point was called for Vanderbilt.
Vanderbilt got another point when singles play started, as No. 61 Panarin decisively took down No. 52 Jin 6-3, 6-1. However, Florida’s comeback began here, as Vanderbilt could not win another match. Nirundorn beat Ross 6-4, 6-3, Bonetto beat Casabon 6-4, 6-3 and Ganesan beat Klopper 7-5, 6-1. These three wins, all in straight sets, gave Florida a 3-2 lead. Finally, Florida’s Kim beat Vanderbilt’s Cox 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 to give Florida the win. Edengren was up on Coquelin 6-1, 5-7, 5-1 when play finished.
“These guys left their heart and soul out there and that’s what I love about this group so much—not just the guys that are playing but the ones on the sidelines as well,” head coach Scott Brown said. “I know what I’m going to get out of this group every day they step on the battlefield. It’s a really special group, and because of that, this has been one of the more enjoyable years of my 12 seasons as a college coach.”
The Commodores’ chances of making the NCAA Tournament are up in the air. However, Brown feels confident they can still make it.
“Knock on wood that we can get into the NCAA Tournament,” Brown said. “We’re going to go out there and start training again Monday like we’re playing and work on those things to get that 1 or 2 percent better before NCAAs.”
