Friday, 03/19/2010

Thanks to a 14-1 start to the spring season, senior Davey Sandgren and junior John-Patrick Smith have climbed back to the top spot in the ITA national doubles rankings.

 

Sandgren and Smith returned to the No. 1 ranking for the first time since September. In addition, Smith moved up two spots back to No. 2 in the singles rankings, a position he has occupied for most of the season.

 

Tennessee remained second in the team rankings with a 15-1 record and a 4-0 start to Southeastern Conference play for the first time since 2005. Virginia, which won the ITA National Team Indoor Championship against the Vols a month ago, stayed in first place with a 17-1 overall record.

 

In Doubles

 

Being the top-ranked team is nothing new for Sandgren and Smith. They were the No. 1 team in the final ITA 2009 season rankings and retained that position in the fall preseason poll.

 

Sandgren and Smith dropped to No. 7 in the January rankings after an 11-3 fall season, but they have steadily moved up the ladder this spring, with 5 of their 14 victories in 2010 coming against ranked opponents. They have improved their record to 25-4 overall and 3-1 in the SEC.

 

Historically speaking, they are one of the most successful duos in UT history with 64 wins together, good for third on the career list. Chris Mahony and Pablo Montana (1993-96) are second with 75 wins.

 

Junior Boris Conkic and Rhyne Williams are riding a 13-match winning streak at the No. 2 doubles position and remained fifth in the rankings. They have a 22-2 record this season, with their two losses coming against top-10 opponents.

 

Despite having played just five matches together during their run to win the ITA All-American Championships in the fall, Conkic and Smith remained No. 7 in the rankings.

 

In Singles

 

Smith is off to a 3-0 start in the SEC at the No. 1 position and earned a big win Sunday, defeating No. 8 Eric Quigley 6-3, 6-1 in the Vols’ 6-1 win against Kentucky. On Tuesday, he improved from fourth to second in the rankings behind Southern California’s Steve Johnson.

 

Smith has a team-leading 28-5 record this season and is just three wins away from the 100th in his career.

 

Conkic remained at No. 32 in the rankings with a 21-6 record. Williams, who has started SEC play 3-1, moved up seven spots to No. 44. He has a 25-6 overall record in his first year as a Vol. Senior Matt Brewer stayed in the rankings, coming in at No. 95 with a 17-9 record in what has easily been the best season of his collegiate career.

 

 ITA National Rankings

Singles

No. 2 – John-Patrick Smith

No. 32 – Boris Conkic

No. 44 – Rhyne Williams

No. 95 – Matt Brewer

 

Doubles

No. 1 – D. Sandgren/Smith

No. 5 – Conkic/Williams

No. 7 – Conkic/Smith