BLOOMINGTON, Ind. --- Georgia men’s tennis rising sophomore Austin Smith made a run at the prestigious USTA/ITA National Summer Championships this weekend, reaching the third round of the tournament on the campus of the University of Indiana in Bloomington.
Smith received a first-round bye before posting a convincing 6-1, 6-0 win over Dayton’s Graham Reinbold in the second round on Saturday. He then suffered a tough 3-6, 6-4, 1-0(6) loss to Michigan’s Justin Rossi via a third-set super tiebreaker on Sunday.
Smith earned his place in the 128-player main draw by winning the singles title during last month’s Southeast leg of the ITA Summer Circuit in Gainesville, Fla. His freshman season in 2013 saw the Atlanta native post a 24-10 overall singles record for Georgia, including a mark of 17-7 in dual matches and 5-2 in SEC play.
Nearly 30,000 men and women have competed in ITA Summer Circuit events since its inception in 1993. The circuit provides college (and junior and alumni) players the opportunity to compete in organized events virtually year round. The circuit is comprised of nine regional circuits (Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Midwest, Central, Mountain, Texas, Northern California and Southern California) consisting of four consecutive open tournaments played during the month of July, leading up to the National Summer Championships.
