OCTOBER 24, 2011
TULSA, Okla. - Junior Anis Ghorbel (Sfax, Tunisia) stands on
the brink of Drake men's tennis history after becoming only the second Bulldog
to advance to the finals of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Central Regional with a pair of victories on Monday (Oct. 24).
Ghorbel became the initial Drake player since Maor Zirkin in 2008 to
reach the semifinals after registering a 6-1, 6-2 win over fifth-seeded and No.
51 ranked Clifford Marsland of Tulsa.
Ghorbel moved into Tuesday's (Oct. 25) championship match on the strength
of a 6-4, 6-3 triumph against 31st-rated Christopher Aumueller of Nebraska, who
also was the tournament's No. 3 seed.
"I felt very confident on the court today and played with good energy,"
Ghorbel commented. "I'm looking
forward to a great opportunity in the final tomorrow."
The last Bulldog to reach the championship match was Dalibor Pavic in
2007, who came up short in his bid for a title against Andrei
Daescu of Oklahoma.
"Anis played great tennis today and I'm looking forward to him finishing
strong tomorrow," said Drake head coach Evan Austin. "He's very excited
about the opportunity to play in the regional final tomorrow."
Not lost in the excitement of Ghorbel's efforts was the play of junior Jean Erasmus (Windhoek, Namibia), who
became the first Bulldog since Ivan Mendoza in 2008 to play in the semifinal
round of the consolation draw, when he faced Ashton Kalhorn of Bradley. Erasmus quickly dispatched of Kalhorn,
6-3, 6-0, before claiming the consolation singles title with a 6-1, 6-1 triumph
over Gabriel Townes of Bradley.
Ghorbel will battle 14th-seeded Tsvetan Mihov of Oklahoma in the championship match at 9:00
a.m. on Tuesday (Oct. 25).
ITA CENTRAL REGIONAL
OCTOBER 24, 2011 • TULSA, OKLA.
SINGLES:
Anis Ghorbel (DU) def. No. 51 Clifford Marsland (Tulsa), 6-1, 6-2
Anis Ghorbel (DU) def. No. 31 Christopher Aumueller (NEB), 6-4, 6-3
Jean Erasmus (DU) def. Ashton Kalhorn (BU), 6-3, 6-0
Jean Erasmus (DU) def. Gabriel Townes (BU), 6-1, 6-1
**CORRECTION - It has since been determined that Robert Novotny
captured the 1994 Rolex Region V singles title, so Ghorbel was the third
Bulldog to play for a regional singles title **
