PROVO, Utah -- (Sept. 16, 2005) --The BYU Men's tennis team used day three of the Iman's Court Open to clinch three of the four spots in Saturday's championship round.
Dominik Kaufhold advanced to the singles championship match by defeating his teammate Nima Roshan in a tough three sets. Kaufhold will now face Eric Roberson, who advanced to the final round by defeating Kaufhold's doubles partner James Ludlow.
"I was really thrilled for Dominik," said BYU tennis coach Brad Pearce. "It was a good day for him and he's certainly shown me a lot during this tournament."
The most anticipated match of the day pitted Cougar coach Brad Pearce against his own players. He and his partner Dan Battistone beat Dominik Kaufhold and James Ludlow 8-6 in a match that was well played on both sides of the net. By winning the semi-final match Pearce earned the chance to play for the championship against the BYU doubles team of Jose Lechuga and Nima Roshan. Lechuga and Roshan played the number one doubles spot for BYU last season.
With three days complete and only the championship matches left to play, Pearce said he's happy with what he's seen from his players during the tournament. Pearce said he is pleased with his team because he saw them play hard in some tough situations.
"What I want to see is that no matter what position my players are playing for, it still matters to them how they play," Pearce said.
Pearce will be able to watch some of his team and play against others on Saturday. The singles championship match begins at 11 a.m., followed by the doubles championship at 1 p.m. Both matches will be played at the BYU Outdoor Tennis Courts. Admission is free and open to the public.
Complete brackets and results can be found at www.edraws.com/byu.
BYU RESULTS
SINGLES:
Roshan def Werbeck 6-1, 6-1
Kaufhold def Hand 2-6, 7-6, 7-5
Roberson def Sanchez 6-3, 6-2
Ludlow def Battistone 7-6, 6-1
Sanchez def Hand 2-1 Retired
Kaufhold def Roshan 6-4, 6-7, 6-3
Roberson def Ludlow 7-6, 6-7, 6-3
DOUBLES:
Lechuga/Roshan def Roberson/Werbeck 8-6
Battistone/Pearce def Kaufhold/Ludlow 8-6
Hand/ Sanchez def Tyden/Merchant 8-2