TCU
ITA Regionals
Cirstea, Brighiu Reach Quarters at ITA Texas Regional
10/25/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
Oct. 25, 2009
COLLEGE STATION, Texas—The TCU men's tennis team continued play Sunday at the Wilson/ITA Texas Regional Championships in day two at Texas A&M's George P. Mitchell Tennis Center.
Four Horned Frogs entered the day alive in the main singles draw, while the squad also featured a pair of doubles tandems continuing play in the Round of 16.
Freshman Marius Cirstea and junior Emanuel Brighiu each advanced to the singles quarterfinals with victories to open the day's competition.
Cirstea earned a big three-set win over the draw's No. 9 seed, Attila Bucko of Baylor, 3-6, 7-5, 7-5. Bucko was ranked No. 85 nationally during the preseason. Following the win, Cirstea was matched up against another ranked foe in the quarterfinals in No. 30 Austin Krajicek of Texas A&M, the No. 5 seed. Cirstea put up a tough fight before falling by a score of 7-6, 6-3.
"I was really pleased with how Marius played today," head coach Dave Borelli said. "He beat a very good player in Bucko and then gave Krajicek all he could handle. He has played up to the level that we thought he could when he came here this fall. He had never really played on hardcourts before coming to TCU, and he's really starting to get a feel for it the way I know he can. He's really had a coming-out showing this tournament."
Brighiu's day opened with an easy Round of 16 win over Rice's Oscar Podlewski, 6-1, 6-4. Like Cirstea, Brighiu then faced a challenging quarterfinal match against a ranked opponent in No. 46 Ed Corrie of Texas, also a No. 5 seed in the draw. Corrie was able to come away with a 6-4, 6-2 victory.
"Brighiu also had another good day today," Borelli said. "He's not quite all the way to where he needs to be yet, but he is making progress. His serving has been better, which I'm happy with."
Mbarek and Nichols each dropped their day's opening matches in the Round of 16 to players from Rice in Michael Nusslein (6-2, 7-5) and Bruno Rosa (7-6, 6-3), respectively. Rosa entered the fall with the nation's No. 22 preseason ranking.
Also competing in singles was junior Christopher Price, who continued his march through the consolation bracket following Saturday's loss in the main draw. Price earned two victories Sunday over players from UT Arlington (Gonzalo Bienzobas and Brieuc Hamon) by identical 6-2, 6-1 scores. He will continue on for TCU in consolation singles Monday, when he plays UT Pan Am's Nirvik Mohinta in the semifinals at 9 a.m.
In doubles action, Brighiu and Mbarek reached the quarterfinals after opening the day with an 8-3 win over the UT Arlington pairing of Hamon/Subiratsa. The Frog tandem was then eliminated in the quarterfinals by Texas Tech's duo of Carvalho/Garcia, 8-2. TCU's other doubles team of Nichols/Price suffered an 8-5 setback to Baylor's Bley/Bucko in the Round of 16.
Complete draws and results from the Wilson/ITA Texas Regional Championships can be found by visiting the link at the top of this page.
Results
Wilson/ITA Texas Regional Championships
Oct. 25, 2009
College Station, Texas (George P. Mitchell Tennis Center)
MEN'S SINGLES
Round of 16
Michael Nusslein (Rice) def. (5) Slah Mbarek (TCU) 6-2, 7-5
(17) Emanuel Brighiu (TCU) def. (17) Oscar Podlewski (Rice) 6-1, 6-4
(17) Marius Cirstea (TCU) def. (9) Attila Bucko (Baylor) 3-6, 7-5, 7-5
(2) Bruno Rosa (Rice) def. (17) Zach Nichols (TCU) 7-6, 6-3
Quarterfinals
(5) Ed Corrie (Texas) def. (17) Emanuel Brighiu (TCU) 6-4, 6-2
(5) Austin Krajicek (Texas A&M) def. (17) Marius Cirstea (TCU) 7-6, 6-3
Consolation Round 3
Christopher Price (TCU) def. Gonzalo Bienzobas (UTA) 6-2, 6-1
Consolation Round 4
Christopher Price (TCU) def. Brieuc Hamon (UTA) 6-2, 6-1
MEN'S DOUBLES
Round of 16
(7) E. Brighiu/S. Mbarek (TCU) def. B. Hamon/D. Subiratsa (UTA) 8-3
J. Bley/A. Bucko (Baylor) def. Z. Nichols/C. Price (TCU) 8-5
Quarterfinals
R. Carvalho/R. Garcia (Texas Tech) def. E. Brighiu/S. Mbarek (TCU) 8-2
Players Mentioned
