NORCROSS, Ga. – Georgia junior Javier Garrapiz defeated two top-10 opponents to advance to the finals of the SEC Coaches Indoor Tennis Championships Sunday at the Racquet Club of the South.

Georgia also has a team in the doubles finals as seniors Jamie Hunt and Nate Schnugg downed Florida’s tandem of Sekou Bangora and Joey Burkhardt, 8-5
In singles, Garrapiz beat second-ranked and tournament top-seed J.P. Smith of Tennessee in the quarterfinals, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, then ousted Kentucky’s eighth-ranked Eric Quigley in the semifinals, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.

Garrapiz, ranked No. 45, will face Tennessee’s 68th-ranked Boris Conkic in the finals Monday at 10 a.m. He will attempt to become the third Bulldog to win the SEC Indoor Tournament in the last four years; Travis Helgeson won the title in 2007 followed by Luis Flores in 2008.

“Javi is continuing his amazing run and what has really been a tremendous year for him,” sad Georgia head coach Manuel Diaz. “He beat two of the top players in country today in succession. He has taken his game to new heights and has a great attitude. That is the difference in close matches. He’s been mentally tough when things aren’t going perfect and he’s been able to turn it around after losing momentum. He earned two great wins today.”

“I didn’t really look at who I was playing and what they were ranked,” Garrapiz said. “I just wanted to play my game. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but I just had to keep fighting and go into it with the right mentality.”

Schnugg and Hunt will also play at 10 a.m. in the doubles finals against Florida’s 10th-ranked Antoine Bennetau and Alex Lacroix. Georgia last won a doubles title at the SEC Indoors in 2006.

“I thought Jamie and Nate did a good job of establishing a good level of energy,” Diaz said. “Still, they were a little sloppy at the beginning, and we are going to have to play better tomorrow.”

In other singles action, Schnugg advanced to the semifinals with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Davey Sandgren, then fell to Conkic, 2-6, 6-3, 6-1. Conkic also defeated Georgia’s Drake Bernstein in the quarterfinals, 6-4, 6-2.

SUNDAY’S RESULTS
Singles Quarterfinals

Javier Garrapiz (Georgia) def. JP Smith (Tennessee), 6-2, 3-6, 6-1

Eric Quigley (Kentucky) def. Sekou Bangoura (Florida), 6-4, 1-6, 6-1

Nate Schnugg (Georgia) def. Davey Sandgren (Tennessee), 6-2, 6-3

Boris Conkic (Tennessee) def. Drake Bernstein (Georgia), 6-4, 6-2

Singles Semifinals

Javier Garrapiz (Georgia) def. Eric Quigley (Kentucky), 3-6, 6-2, 6-2

Boris Conkic (Tennessee) def. Nate Schnugg (Georgia), 2-6, 6-3, 6-1
Singles Consolation

Jarryd Botha (Alabama) def. Daniel Sanchez (Mississippi State), 3-6, 6-1, 1-0(3)

Stefan Szacinski (LSU) def. Ed Jones (Tennessee), 6-4, 4-6, 1-0(6)

Max Gregor (Mississippi State) def. Alex Lambropoulos (Kentucky), 6-4, 7-6(5)

Doubles Semifinals

Jamie Hunt/Nate Schnugg (Georgia) def. Sekou Bangoura/Joey Burkhardt (Florida), 8-5

Antoine Bennetau/Alex Lacroix (Florida) def. JP Smith/Davey Sandgren (Tennessee), w/o

Women’s tennis team caps Georgia Invitational with perfect day

Sophomore Chelsey Gullickson and the Bulldog duo of Gullickson and Nadja Gilchrist were declared winners of the Georgia Invitational Sunday after going undefeated in the three-day round-robin tennis event.

Both Bulldogs went 3-0 in singles and 3-0 in doubles as a tandem in the field that featured Texas, Kansas State, Troy and Georgia State. Gullickson, who is ranked 14th nationally, capped a perfect weekend Sunday with a 6-4,6-0 win over Troy freshman Karoline Grymel. Gilchrist, who is ranked 57th, dispatched Troy junior Leonie Guijt 6-0,6-1. Gullickson’s wins in the tournament included one over Texas freshman Ariel Ellis who is ranked 22nd nationally. In doubles, the Gilchrist/Gullickson team beat the highest ranked team in the field on Friday. They cruised past the 27th-ranked Texas tandem of Amanda Craddock and Krista Damico 8-3.

“I thought everybody played really well, a lot of us were hurt in the fall so it was good to get back out on the courts and compete again,” said Gullickson. “It’s one thing to practice and another to play points and matches. We had some nerves and we’re all a little sore after playing the last three days. I was challenged Saturday and Sunday and that’s good to get ready for the team matches.”

Georgia junior Cameron Ellis finished 3-0 in singles while seniors Yvette Hyndman and Naoko Ueshima went 2-1. Bulldog senior Lara Fakhoury went 0-1 and did not see action Saturday or Sunday due to a shoulder injury. She was up a set and in line for a win Friday before having to retire due to the injury. In doubles, Ellis posted a 2-1 record while Hyndman went 1-1 and Ueshima 1-0. The Bulldogs combined to go 13-3 in singles and 5-1 in doubles in the tournament.

“It was a great weekend overall, and I’m pleased with how we played, however we have a lot to work on as we get ready for our 2010 season opener against South Florida next week.”

Fourth-ranked Georgia opens its dual match indoor season here Sunday versus the Bulls at 1 p.m. Admission is free for all regular season matches.

2010 Georgia Invitational Results: Sunday, Jan. 17.
Maggie Mello (UT) def. Kir Kemp (GSU) 6-0,6-2
Sarah Lancaster (UT) def. Martina Ondrackova (GSU) 6-3,6-0
#42 Diana Nakic (GSU) def. #59 Vanja Corovic (UT) 6-3,6-2
Stephanie Davison (UT) def. Ana Gomez Aleman (KSU) 6-2,6-2
Abby Liu (UT) def. Nina Sertic (KSU) 6-3,6-1
Maya Zein-El-Abdin (UT) def. Natasha Vieira (KSU) 7-5,6-4
Maryna Chumak (KSU) def. Carlene Leyden (UT) 6-4,4-6,7-5
#27 Krista Damico (UT) def. Karla Bonacic (KSU) 6-0,6-0
#22 Aeriel Ellis (UT) def. Antea Huljev (KSU) 7-6(2),5-1
Amanda Craddock (UT) def. Petra Chuda (KSU) 6-2,7-6(7)
Caroline Larsson (UT) def. Carmen Borau Ramos (KSU) 6-1,6-2
#57 Nadja Gilchrist (UGA) def. Leonie Guijt (TU) 6-0,6-1
#14 Chelsey Gullickson (UGA) def. Karoline Grymel (TU) 6-0,6-4
Yvette Hyndman (UGA) def. Lauren Simpson (TU) 6-4,6-4
Naoko Ueshima (UGA) def. Rosaura Ramirez-Vegas (TU) 6-0,6-3
Cameron Ellis (UGA) def. Emma Smith (TU) 6-0,6-2