Quiroz repeats as Clay Court champion


USC’s men’s tennis team continued its winning ways this weekend, as junior Roberto Quiroz took home the singles championship for the second year in a row at the United States Tennis Association Clay Court Invitational in Orlando, Fla.

Back-to-back · Junior Roberto Quiroz took home the singles title at the Clay Court Invitational for the second consecutive year. - Ralf Cheung | Daily Trojan

Back-to-back · Junior Roberto Quiroz took home the singles title at the Clay Court Invitational for the second consecutive year. – Ralf Cheung | Daily Trojan

In last year’s Clay Court Invitational, Quiroz defeated Duke’s Michael Redlicki to earn the singles crown. This year, Quiroz repeated his success by taking down Redlicki’s younger brother, Martin, a high school senior, in the finals.

Quiroz entered the tournament as the top seed, which granted him a bye in the first round. In the second round, he defeated Sameer Kumar, a high school player from Indiana, 6-2, 6-1. Next, he took down North Florida’s Norbert Nemscek, 6-2, 6-2. In the quarterfinals, Quiroz defeated Notre Dame’s Quentin Monaghan, 6-1, 6-2.

These victories earned the Guayaquil, Ecuador native a spot in the semifinals, where he squared off against a fellow Trojan in sophomore Max de Vroome. Last week, these two competed against each other in the doubles championship of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Southwest Regional tournament, where de Vroome and junior Eric Johnson came out on top over Quiroz and senior Ray Sarmiento.

Quiroz avenged the doubles loss by taking down de Vroome 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 to advance to the finals. There, he faced Martin Redlicki, who had not dropped a set throughout the entire tournament. Despite Redlicki’s dominant play throughout the tournament, Quiroz emerged victorious by a score of 7-5, 6-0.

Quiroz also advanced to the quarterfinals of the doubles draw with senior Michael Grant. Johnson and de Vroome also made their way to the quarterfinals, while the young team of freshmen Robbie Bellamy and Nick Crystal fell in the Round of 16.

Grant and Bellamy advanced to the Round of 16 in singles, while Johnson and Crystal fell in the first round.

The Trojans’ recent success is a good sign as the team gears up for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Indoor Championships in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.

 

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