DiFazio Advances to the Second Round of the Highland Park Classic Pro Circuit Futures Tournament

Oct. 27, 2010

BIRMINGHAM, AL–Derek DiFazio advanced to the second round of the Highland Park Classic Pro Circuit Futures Tournament in Birmingham, AL with a win over Ashwin Kumar of the US, 6-3, 6-3.

DiFazio started out the match going down an early break but battled back to take the first set 6-3. The second set had the same storyline with DiFazio going down an early break and fighting back from 1-3, to take the match 6-3 in the second. Kumar is currently #773 in the ATP world singles rankings and #249 in the world in doubles.

Kumar was an All-American standout at Harvard from 2004-2008. This win marks the first Pro Circuit singles victory for DiFazio, and he will play the second round on Thursday.

DiFazio will play the winner of Boris Conkic (SRB) and Philip Bester (#2 seed from CAN). Conkic is an All-American standout from University of Tennessee and is currently ranked #1020 in the ATP world rankings. Bester is currently ranked #332 in the ATP world rankings.

“I am very happy to have accomplished this milestone,” said DiFazio. “It was an emotional match today and I had to fight through nerves early on to play my best. I am very excited to bring this win back to Clemson and look forward to giving my best Thursday. It has been a great 3 ½ years here at Clemson, and I look forward to a strong finish these last 7 months.”

“This is a big step for Derek and our program,” said Clemson Assistant Coach John Boetsch. “This opens the door for him to really follow his dreams of playing professionally after graduation. He and his teammates continue to work very hard this fall, and Coach McCuen and I are excited about the challenges ahead this year.”