CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clemson men’s tennis team started their fall season off strong, with a doubles win from Spencer Whitaker and Max Smith and four singles victories, including freshman Ethan Silva’s first career win.
Junior Whitaker and sophomore Smith secured the first doubles win of the fall season for the Tigers over North Florida’s Carroll and Vietri, 7-5. Trey Stinchcomb and Matt Pitts narrowly dropped their doubles match by a score of 6-4 to the Auburn Tigers pair.
Smith impressed in his first fall match, defeating North Florida’s Bruno Vietri in two quick sets, 6-4, 6-2 right before Tim Pitts put in an impressive performance beating Wisconsin’s Zachary Schwartz 6-3, 6-2. Freshman Silva recorded his first career victory for the Tigers after defeating Charlotte’s Brett Gloria in a tough fought three set match by a score of 2-6, 6-4, 6-1. Whitaker rounded out the evening with a solid performance against Auburn’s Gray, 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 in a dominant third set.
“Today was a good start for the boys,” said Head Coach Robbie Weiss. “We need to tighten our play up a bit, but for the first matches of the year, I was pleased. Spencer did a great job bouncing back after losing the second set and took care of business in the third set. I was very proud of his efforts. Matt and Max did a good job competing and had some moments of very good tennis.
“I was proud of Ethan for getting his first official win of the season after falling behind a set. Trey battled his heart out but came up a bit short. Overall, I am pleased with the first day and look forward to seeing the boys compete the rest of the weekend. Our play is not where we need it to be, but I do see progress in areas we have been working on in the summer and early fall.”
The Tigers return for day two of the Clemson Invitational tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. at the Duckworth Family Tennis Facility.
For complete coverage of the Clemson men’s tennis team, follow @ClemsonMTennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Doubles
Whitaker/Smith def. Carroll/Vietri (UNF) 7-5
Gray/Raab (Auburn) def. Stinchcomb/M. Pitts (6-4)
Singles
Spencer Whitaker def. Spencer Gray (Auburn) 6-3, 4-6, 6-0
Coy Sim (UNCC) def. Matt Pitts 4-6, 6-3, 7-6
Max Smith def. Bruno Vietri (North Florida) 6-4, 6-2
Josh Raab (Auburn) def. Trey Stinchcomb 7-5, 4-6, 6-3
Ethan Silva def. Brett Gloria (UNCC) 2-6, 6-4, 6-1
