General Info: Earned spots in both the singles and doubles lineups as a freshman • Won the 2001 Atlantic Coast Conference Flight 2 Doubles Championship, along with partner Romain Coirault.
2002-03: A steady performer in the middle of the Yellow Jacket lineup • Ranked fourth on the team with 15 singles wins on the year and was third with 12 dual-match singles victories • Also had 15 doubles wins in 2003, with 10 of those coming in dual-match competition • Played primarily at the Nos. 3 and 4 positions, compiling 5-4 records at both spots • Moved into the No. 3 spot late in the year after an injury to junior Jason Pieters • Won three of his last five singles matches, including a pair of victories over Florida State’s Chris Westerhof • A player known for fighting through matches, he led the team with a perfect 5-0 record in three-set matches on the year • Teamed with Jason Pieters in the Tech doubles lineup, as the duo notched a 7-5 record on the season and a 4-4 dual-match mark.
2001-02 : Finished the year with a career-best 26 singles victories, posting a 26-17 record in singles play for the year, that win total tied for third on the team • Opened the year with a solid fall, capturing the ACC Indoor Championship with a three-set win over North Carolina’s Andy Metzler, 0-6, 7-6 (6), 6-2 • Defeated teammate Roger Anderson in the semifinals in straight sets by a 6-1, 7-5 score • Reached the quarterfinals of the ITA Region Championship and was a quarterfinalist in doubles play at the Southern Collegiate with partner Fabio Campos and at the Georgia Tech Fall Invitational with parter Stephen Moros • During the spring, played primarily at the No. 3 spot in the Tech lineup, posting a 12-12 singles record and a matching 12-12 doubles mark in dual matches • Clinched Tech’s win over Furman with a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 win over Patrick Gaughan • Teamed with Campos in doubles at the ACC Tournament to defeat Duke’s Alex Bose and Jason Zimmerman by an 8-4 score to help lead Tech to the upset win over the Blue Devils.
2000-01: Posted an 18-12 overall doubles record with partner Romain Coirault, including a 12-8 mark in dual matches • Is 11-6 at No. 2 doubles • Won the ACC Flight 2 doubles championship with a 7-1 conference record • Is 19-7 in singles play, including a 10-3 dual match mark •Was 6-2 at the No. 6 singles position • Posted a 5-1 record in ACC matches.
High School/Junior Tennis: Attended Palmer Academy in Florida, the same school that produced former Yellow Jacket Gordon Hwang • Won the national doubles championship three times in Brazil • Advanced to the semifinals twice and the finals once in singles play • Defended Brazil twice in the Junior World Cup and five times in the South America Junior championship • Ranked in the top five nationally in Brazil in his age group
Personal: Full name is Joao Paulo Sasso Menano • Born May 17, 1982 • Father, Joao Paulo, is a business administrator and mother, Eliane, is a lawyer • Has a brother, Joao Diago Menano, 17, and a sister, Juliana, 20 • Majoring in industrial engineering • Enjoys playing soccer • Began playing tennis when he was 8 years old • Lists “the day that I was accepted at Georgia Tech” as his most memorable non-athletic accomplishment.
CAREER STATISTICS
SINGLES DOUBLES
Year Dual Overall Dual Overall
2000-01 12-2 (.857) 21-6 (.778) 13-9 (.591) 19-13 (.594)
2001-02 12-12 (.500) 26-17 (.605) 12-12 (.500) 20-16 (.556)
Totals 24-14 (.632) 47-23 (.671) 25-21 (.543) 39-29 (.574)
