Oct. 5, 2011
TULSA, Okla. -
Alexander Pelaez and Tuomas Manner teamed up once again and won both of their matches in doubles play in the ITA All-American Tournament at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center in Tulsa, Okla. on Wednesday. This is the furthest the 'Birds have gone at this tournament in history.
Pelaez and Manner won their first match in the third round of qualifying doubles against Texas A&M's Jordan Szabo and Jackson Withrow, 8-4.
Head Coach Cris James believes Pelaez and Manner's ability to start well and get an early lead led to their success in their first match.
"They are riding a confidence high and feel really good," said James. "When they got off to a fast start, it kept their confidence going and put a little doubt in the other guys which was pretty important."
Florida's Billy Federhofer and Nassim Slilam were beat by Pelaez and Manner in the final qualifying round, 8-3. Federhofer and Slilam are ranked number thirty six nationally in doubles play.
James is thrilled with Pelaez and Manner's play throughout this tournament.
"You always think and hope that they've got a chance to make it this far but we haven't gotten this far before so it's a little bit unexpected," James said. "Certainly with these guys, though, the way they have gotten here isn't a fluke. They have been beating people pretty badly and playing extremely well to do it."
The duo will take it easy before Thursday's match.
"They have to take care of their bodies and they have some school work to do so we are just going to relax," James said. "I'm proud of them and if they keep playing like this they can do some pretty great things."
Pelaez and Manner will take on Chase Buchanan and Blaz Rola of Ohio State Thursday. Play is set to begin at 6 p.m.
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