Lawson Prather reached the singles quarterfinals, while Pete Tran and Noe Milliard advanced to the doubles semifinals for Rollins College at the inaugural ITA Division II Individual Championships. The three Rollins men’s tennis players competed at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The event gave Division II student-athletes an opportunity to compete outside team competition and was selected by the ITA to conclude the fall season.
Prather advances through two rounds
Prather opened the singles draw with a 7-6, 6-4 victory over Samuel Antwi of UT Tyler. Prather won the first-set tiebreak 7-2 before completing the opening-round victory with a 6-4 second set. He then defeated Nils Pottbecker of the University of Charleston 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 in the second round.
Bruno Sanchez of Midwestern State ended Prather’s run in the quarterfinals. Sanchez won the first set 6-4, but Prather took the second set 7-6 after winning the tiebreak 7-5. Sanchez then closed the match with a 6-2 victory in the deciding set.
Tran and Milliard reach semifinals
Tran and Milliard opened the doubles draw with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Alexander Edley and Mansur Khajimuradov of Northeastern State. The Rollins pair followed with a 6-4, 4-6, 10-4 win over Nehal Naidoo and Joao D’Amorim of UT Permian Basin. The victory sent Tran and Milliard into the quarterfinals.
Johan Van Wijk and Joris Clermonts of Lee won the first set 6-3 in the quarterfinals. Tran and Milliard answered with a 6-3 second-set victory and won the deciding super tiebreak 10-8 to reach the semifinals. Joshua Hinton and Charles Lefort of Mississippi College ended the Rollins pair’s run after the teams split sets and Mississippi College won the deciding super tiebreak.
Spring opener set
Rollins College is scheduled to open its spring season against United International College on Monday, February 1, at 2 p.m. The match is scheduled for the Tennis & Golf Center in Winter Park. The contest follows Rollins’ appearance at the individual championships.
FSB Take
Prather’s quarterfinal appearance and Tran and Milliard’s semifinal run gave Rollins representation in the later rounds of both draws. The doubles team won three matches before its semifinal exit, while Prather won two singles matches. Those results mark the tournament’s verified outcomes for the three Rollins competitors before the scheduled spring opener.
Source: Original report