BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The University of South Alabama men's tennis opened up play at the Samford Round Robin Friday with a round of doubles and a round of singles.

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Tournament Name: Samford Round Robin
Host: Samford
Date: 10/4
Place: Pat M. Courington Tennis Pavilion / Darwin C. Hardison Courts (Birmingham, Ala.)

DOUBLES
- Max Rauch / Francisco Rocha (Middle Tennessee) def. Sébastien Collard / Leon Pet'ko (South Alabama), 6-3
- Louis Delcour / Martin Bugaj (South Alabama) def. Sean Presson / Will Hann (Middle Tennessee), 6-4

SINGLES
- Alexey Nesterov (Alabama) def. Bugaj (South Alabama), 6-7 (4-7), 6-0, 2-0 retired
- Marcelo Sepulveda Garza (Alabama) def. Delcour (South Alabama), 6-4, 6-3
- Sam Fischer (Alabama) def. Pet'ko (South Alabama), 7-6 (10-8), 6-3
- Collard (South Alabama) def. Tom El Safadi (UAB), 6-3 6-2

NOTES
- South Alabama opened with a round of singles action and then played one round of doubles.
- Bugaj had split the first two sets and was leading (2-0) in the third before having to retire due to injury.

UP NEXT
- South Alabama will continue play at the Samford Round Robin with a pair of doubles and a pair of singles rounds. The first doubles round will get underway at 9 a.m.

THEY SAID IT
Head coach Nick Brochu
- On day one play at the Samford Round Robin: "Today was an O.K. day, but not really what we expect as far as results go. The scores weren't bad, but there were some sets that we started out really well in but weren't able to finish. I feel we're missing a little bit of our fire down the stretch of matches. Those young guys have to understand that it's not going to always be easy or pretty. Sometimes you have to fight even when you are tired and exhausted. As a player, you have to learn how to keep going and pushing yourself. We're in the middle of the fall season right now and we're going to have some injuries that you have to learn to play with; it's not going to be a perfect day every day. We have to try to learn how to win through pain and adversity. That's why we play these [fall] tournaments though so that we can get tougher. Today is a good indication of where some of the players are at.

"That being said, we had a player [Martin Bugaj] who had to retire in his match due to a strained muscle. We're going to evaluate him tonight and see if he's able to play tomorrow or if he needs a day off or if he's done for the tournament. That was an unfortunate thing that happened today but he'll be back. "
- On what he's looking for tomorrow out of his players: "Tomorrow, we're definitely looking for more energy in doubles, which was lacking today. When you hit a wall, you have to bounce back."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Baseline Club, the tennis-specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Baseline Club go directly to support the South Alabama men's and women's tennis programs. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/baselineclub

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