Head Coach Brandon Wagner Secures First Set of Victories in Season Opening Doubleheader

CLEMSON, S.C. – After opening the 2024 season with a doubleheader at home, the Tigers win their first shutout of the season and Head Coach Brandon Wagner secures his first set of victories as Clemson starts off the year with a 2-0 record on Saturday, January 13 at Duckworth Family Tennis Facility. Star-studded performances from the five new additions and noteworthy returners allowed the Tigers to impress all as they came out on top over Brown (6-1) and The Citadel (7-0). 

“Today was a great start of the season for our guys,” Wagner said. “They have been waiting for this day for a good while and went after it the way we wanted them to. We have a lot of new faces and starters and they did a great job. I’m personally happy today representing the program and the Tiger family getting my first wins at the helm of the program. Looking forward to a big test in a few weeks at the National Kickoff.”

 In a series of doubles matches, Wissam Abderrhamn and Ryuhei Azuma of Clemson beat Zander Bravo and Noah Hernandez of Brown 6-2. Following this, Clemson’s Stewart Aronson and Marko Mesarovic won their match with a 6-1 victory over Brown’s Alex Koong and Brian Chong to secure the doubles point for Clemson. To complete the sweep, the 30th ranked pair of Maxwell Smith and Noa Vukadin from Clemson secured a 6-4 victory over Chun Lam and Alex Finkelstein of Brown. 

In the singles matches, Clemson’s Matt Pitts dominated Brown’s James Lian with a convincing 6-0, 6-1 victory. Azuma of Clemson displayed a dominant performance, defeating Alex Finkelstein of Brown with a decisive score of 6-2, 6-2. Clemson’s Marko Mesarovic secured a solid win against Brown’s Zander Bravo with a score of 6-3, 6-4.  Lam managed a comeback against Aronson of Clemson with a final score of 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 to win Brown’s only point of the day. Abderrhman faced a tough battle against Noah Hernandez of Brown and ultimately secured a victory with a scoreline of 6-7(8-10), 7-6(7-5), 1-0 (10-7). To finish off the match, the No. 84 ranked Vukadin showcased resilience and overcame Brown’s Alex Koong with a hard-fought 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-1), 1-0 (12-10) victory.

With a 7-0 win over the Bulldogs, the Tigers dominated in their first shutout of the season. Head Coach Wagner led his team to a 2-0 start to secure his second win as a head coach. In a commanding doubles performance, Clemson’s Mesarovic/Aronson showcased dominance with a flawless 6-0 win against Cariov/Bagwell. Following suit, Damm/Wissam secured an impressive 6-1 victory over Shoemake/Kamieniecki of The Citadel to clinch the doubles point for Clemson. The Pitts/Whitaker duo continued Clemson’s success by defeating Van Dyke/Robins with a scoreline of 6-2. 

In the singles matches against The Citadel, Clemson secured straightforward victories. Abderrhman defeated Hayden Shoemake in straight sets with a score of 6-1, 6-1. Smith contributed to the team’s success with a 6-1, 6-2 win against Bradey Minnich. Shortly after, Aronson secured a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Ted Bagwell. Pitts earned a victory against Teo Cariov with a scoreline of 6-1, 6-4. Mesarovic won over Sebastian Kamieniecki with scores of 6-4, 6-3 to continue the Tiger’s success.  Whitaker clinched a 6-1, 7-5 victory against Noah Van Dyke in a thriller to finish off the Bulldogs. 

Up next, Clemson will travel to Columbia, S.C. to play its rival South Carolina on January 27-28. 

For complete coverage of the Clemson men’s tennis team follow @ClemsonMTennis on Twitter and Instagram. 

RESULTS: 

Clemson (1-0) vs Brown (0-1) 

Doubles

1. No. 30 Smith/Vukadin (CU) def. Lam/ Finkelstein (Br), 6-4
2. Abderrhamn/Azuma (CU) def Bravo/Hernandez (Br), 6-2
3. Aronson/Mesarovic (CU) def. Koong/Chong (Br), 6-1

Order of Finish: 3,2,1

Singles

1. Ryuhei Azuma (CU) def. Alex Finkelsteinn (Br), 6-2, 6-2
2. Wissam Abderrhman (CU) def. Noah Hernandez (Br), 6-7(8-10), 7-6(7-5), 1-0 (10-7)
3. No. 84 Noa Vukadin (CU) def. Alex Koong (Br), 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-1), 1-0 (12-10)
4. Marko Mesarovic (CU) def. Zander Bravo (Br), 6-3, 6-4
5. Matt Pitts (CU) def. James Lian (Br), 6-0, 6-1
6. Chun Lam (Br) def. Stewart Aronson (CU), 3-6, 6-3, 6-2

Order of Finish: 5, 1, 4, 6, 2, 3

Clemson (1-0) vs The Citadel (0-0)

Doubles

1. Damm/Wissam (CU) def. Shoemake/kamieniecki (CIT), 6-1
2. Mesarovic/Aronson (CU) def. Cariov/Bagwell (CIT), 6-0
3. Pitts/Whitaker (CU) def. Van Dyke/Robins (CIT), 6-2

Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3

Singles

1. Wissam Abderrhman (CU) def. Hayden Shoemake (CIT), 6-1, 6-1
2. Marko Mesarovic (CU) def. Sebastian Kamieniecki (CIT), 6-4, 6-3
3. Matt Pitts (CU) def. Teo Cariov (CIT), 6-1, 6-4
4. Spencer Whitaker (CU) def. Noah Van Dyke (CIT), 6-1, 7-5
5. Stewart Aronson (CU) def. Ted Bagwell (CIT), 6-2, 6-1
6. Max Smith (CU) def. Bradey Minnich (CIT), 6-1, 6-2

Order of Finish: 1, 6, 5, 3, 2, 4