LAKELAND, Fla. – For the first time in program history, Southeastern University is hosting the ITA NAIA Florida Regional Championship. After day one, the Fire are sending seven individuals and four doubles teams to the quarterfinals.
Taking on the best in the region, the SEU men saw Mark Griffin, Diego Menendez Vina, Alejandro Orihuela and Javier Gallego make it to the Round of 16. The Fire had three doubles teams, Menendez Vina/Piero Fernandez, Gustavo Rubio/Sam Reeder and Griffin/Orihuela advance to the Quarterfinals.
On the women's side of things, the Fire advanced Carlotta Nonnis Marzano, Isabella Forcella and Irene Lopez Suero. Nonnis Marzano teamed up with Alessia Ciampi to qualify for the doubles quarterfinals.
The Regional Quarterfinals will be on Friday, Sept. 20, in Lakeland. The SEU men's single Quarterfinalists will feature seeded players in each of the four. No. 2 seed Gallego faces Adam Jaupart of SCAD and No. 4 seed Menendez Vina plays Simione Boscatto of Keiser where SEU is favored. Griffin battles No. 1 seed Shaheed Alam from Keiser and Orihuela takes on No. 7 seed Andrej Krejcik also of Keiser. In doubles, No. 4 seed Menendez Vina/Fernandez is scheduled against Boscatto/Felipe Rivadeneira of Keiser while SEU's other doubles teams of Rubio/Reeder and Griffin/Orihuela take on each other.
For the women's Quarterfinals, SEU's No. 8 seed Nonnis Marzano has Cherry Xiang of SCAD, Forcella battles Anita Chronei of St. Thomas and Lopez Suero aims to upset No. 2 seed Destinee Martins of Keiser. Nonnis Marzano and Ciampi line up against St. Thomas' Vivien Faludi/Lauren Seemann team in the doubles Quarterfinals.
For full results from day one, please click here.
Men's Day One Wrap-up
Leading the way, No. 2 Gallego received a Round of 32 bye before he coasted past David Lopez Cruz of SCAD (6-0, 6-2). No. 4 Menendez Vina also received a bye before he took care of St. Thomas' Jan Gwaltig (6-3, 6-2). Oriheula was the lone Fire player to win two individual matches with an opening round of 6-1, 6-0 over Warner's Nikhil Mital and followed with a victory past Andrew Soliva Bosch of Ave Maria (6-3, 6-2). Griffin made the fourth SEU quarterfinalist with a win by default to start and then he defeated A.J. Duggan of Ave Maria (6-3, 6-1).
Gonzalo Fernandez won his opening match before he fell to No. 8 seed Mark Tryakshin of SCAD (6-1, 6-1). Piero Fernandez split his matches with an opening round victory but he dropped a tight bout (7-5, 7-5) to Keiser's Didrik Liljekvist. Gustavo Rubio made it three Fire players with match splits as he bested Warner's Luis Rodriguez (7-5, 6-3) before he retired in the middle of his second match.
After taking their first doubles matchup (8-3), Piero Fernandez and Menendez Vina played to their No. 4 seeding with an 8-1 victory over Petrov/Bosch of Ave Maria. The duo of Rubio/Reeder followed an opening 8-4 win with an 8-3 win over O'Hara/Wieber of SCAD to advance. SEU's Griffin/Oriheula also had a 8-3 first win before they took care of Jaupart/Dian Dong from SCAD (8-6).
Women's Day One Wrap-up:
Leading the Fire singles, Nonnis Marzano enjoyed an opening bye before she breezed past Nadia Abad of Florida National (6-2, 6-0). Forcella posted two victories with a Round of 16 win over Violetta Fedyaeva of Warner (6-2, 6-3). Suero made it three Fire quarterfinalists by shutting out (6-0, 6-0) opening win and added a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Sofia Nardone of St. Thomas.
Isabella Bolivar Garces swept her first foe (6-0, 6-0) but fell in the Round of 32 as the lone other singles win.
The Fire duo of Nonnis Marzano and Ciampi received a first round bye before they took care of Yu/Xiang of SCAD to advance to the quarterfinals.
Bolivar Garces/Lopez Suero posted a SEU win in their first match of 8-2 over a team from Florida National but lost in the second round.
