Thursday, April 3
Gainesville, Fla.
5:00 p.m.
University of Georgia
at
Florida
Senior Miguel Perez Peña during a singles match against No. 56 Vanderbilt on Thursday, Mar. 27, 2025 at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.
Photo by: Sofia Yaker/UGAAA
Men’s Tennis Geared For Road Slate At No. 32 Florida, No. 21 South Carolina
April 02, 2025 | Men's Tennis
GAINESVILLE, Fla./COLUMBIA, S.C. – The University of Georgia men's team, 14-7 (7-3 SEC), is geared for two road matches against No. 32 Florida, 12-8 (7-4 SEC), on Thursday evening before traveling to play No. 21 South Carolina, 14-6 (8-3 SEC), on Saturday afternoon.
*PDF of Full Match Notes
Match 22 – at No. 32 Florida
Thursday, Apr. 3, 2025
5:00 p.m. E.T.
Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex
Live Streaming: https://gado.gs/2db
Instagram: @UGATennis | X: @UGATennis | Facebook: UGAMensTennis
Match 23 – at No. 21 South Carolina
Saturday, Apr. 5, 2025
1:00 p.m. E.T.
Carolina Tennis Center
Live Streaming: https://gado.gs/cxz
Live Stats: https://gado.gs/cxy
Instagram: @UGATennis | X: @UGATennis | Facebook: UGAMensTennis
BULLDOG BULLETIN
The First Serve: The University of Georgia men's tennis team went 3-0 last week picking up two wins against SEC opponents against No. 56 Vanderbilt and No. 49 Ole Miss before defeating North Carolina A&T State to close out the weekend.
Georgia holds an all time record of 65-33 against Florida, last defeating the Gators during the 2023 SEC tournament in Auburn. In doubles, the Bulldogs took the doubles point off a win on court one from No. 7 Ethan Quinn/Trent Bryde over No. 4 Axel Nefve/Will Grant, 6-4, before Blake Croyder/Britton Johnston clinched the point on court three, 6-1 over Lukas Greif/Jonah Braswell. In singles, Teodor Giusca led off with 6-3, 6-3 victory over Tanapatt Nirundorn on court six before Miguel Perez Peña won on court five, 6-2, 6-3 over Nate Bonetto. No. 4 Quinn seal the 4-0 sweep on court one over No. 37 Nefve, 6-4, 6-4.
Florida checked in this week at No. 32 in this week's ITA rankings coming off of a 4-1 record in the last five matches. This year, the Gators have knocked off the likes of Auburn, Alabama, and Kentucky in SEC play and have protected their home court in all but one match (5-2 loss to Texas). Last year, Florida grabbed a win in the SEC tournament before falling in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Two players - No. 68 Jeremy Jin and No. 95 Adhithya Ganesan - featured in this week's ITA rankings with doubles pairings No. 23 Henry Jefferson/Tanapatt Nirundorn and No. 70 Adhithya Ganesan/Tanapatt Nirundorn maintaining their stature in this week's poll. The Gators have four freshman (Cordova, Segado, Villard and Weintraub), four sophomores (Edengren, Ganesan, Jefferson and Jin), one junior (Nirundorn), one redshirt senior (Johnson) and one graduate (Paliska) on the roster.
Florida holds winning records on each singles court this spring except for court two where the team has gone collectively 7-8 (.467). Interestingly, the Bulldogs own a collective 15-3 record (.833) on court two - the highest win percentage of any court for Georgia this year. More, two of the six projected singles players for the Gators enter the match with a multi-match winning streak whereas all six projected singles players for Georgia enter with a multi-match winning streak.
Against South Carolina, the Bulldogs are 42-11 all time last taking down the Gamecocks in 2023 in Columbia, 4-0 in a No. 7 at No. 5 contest. Phillip Henning/Teodor Giusca went first in doubles defeating No. 31 Jake Beasley/James Story on court two, 6-3, before No. 7 Ethan Quinn/Trent Bryde clinched the point on court one, 6-3 over No. 1 Connor Thomson/Toby Samuel. In singles, the three bottom courts moved swiftly to sweep the road match, all three in straight sets. Giusca won 6-4, 6-2 over Beasley on court six and No. 107 Blake Croyder defeated No. 120 Raphael Lambling, 6-3, 6-3. Miguel Perez Peña sealed the match on five with a 6-3, 6-2 result over No. 88 Casey Hoole.
The Gamecocks are ranked No. 21 in the country after impressive results over No. 19 Alabama, No. 18 Oklahoma and No. 12 Texas A&M. South Carolina is 14-6 (8-3 SEC) having dropped conference matches to No. 20 Mississippi State, No. 31 Kentucky and No. 4 Texas. In the last five matches, the Gamecocks are 3-2. Last year, South Carolina reached the championship game of the SEC tournament before falling in the round of 16 of the NCAA tournament, finishing the season at 19-15 (4-8 SEC). In singles, No. 42 Connor Thomson, No. 98 Sean Daryabeigi and No. 111 Jelani Sarr feature with No. 4 Connor Thomson/Lucas Andrade da Silva in the doubles poll. On the roster, the Gamecocks have five freshmen (Avram, Gazeu, Henceroth, Karahan and Stenzer), two sophomores (Daryabeigi and Sarr), one junior (Andrada da Silva), one senior (Hoole) and one graduate (Thomson).
The 2024 Southern Intercollegiate Championships featured seven Bulldog vs. Gamecock matches. Georgia holds the slight edge in the battles winning four of the seven with Freddy Blaydes defeating Atakan Karahan, Ryan Colby defeating Jelani Sarr, Thomas Paulsell defeating Sean Daryabeigi and Niels Ratiu defeating Lucas Andrade da Silva.
Prior to the dual match season, the Bulldogs put together several strong performances through the fall. Headlined by Thomas Paulsell's round of 16 run in the NCAA Singles Championships, three Bulldogs (Paulsell, Perez Peña and Pinto Sansano) qualified for the NCAA individual tournament. Paulsell qualified for the championships by way of finishing as a semi-finalist at the ITA Conference Masters Championships in Rome, Ga. Perez Peña qualified after being crowned co-champion of the ITA Southeast Regional, and Pinto Sansano after winning the 5-8 playoff at the ITA South Sectional. Notably, by reaching the round of 16 in the singles tournament, Paulsell was recognized as the program's 55th All-American.
The Bulldogs culled together 77 singles wins in the fall, 13 of which were over ranked opponents. In doubles, Georgia had 24 total wins - eight ranked. The Bulldogs individual records from the fall (spring dual match records in parentheses) are compiled below:
Singles: Overall:
Freddy Blaydes: 5-3 (2-2) 7-5
Ryan Colby: 11-7 (11-4) 22-11
Filipe Costa: 2-5 (3-1) 5-6
Parker Jacques: 5-3 (1-0) 6-3
Cyrus Mahjoob: 6-4 (3-0) 9-4
Parker Mariencheck: 2-5 (1-0) 3-5
Thomas Paulsell: 13-6 (8-6) 21-12
Miguel Perez Peña: 9-6 (11-3) 20-9
Oscar Pinto Sansano: 9-6 (16-4) 25-10
Niels Ratiu: 6-5 (11-5) 17-10
Gabriele Vulpitta: N/A (7-6) 7-6
Doubles (Teams): Overall:
Blaydes/Ratiu: 10-5 (5-4) 15-9
Paulsell/Colby: 7-4 (4-5) 11-9
Perez Peña/Pinto Sansano: 5-5 (N/A) 5-5
Costa/Mahjoob: 2-3 (N/A) 2-3
Jacques/Mariencheck: 0-4 (N/A) 0-4
Ratiu/Vulpitta: N/A (2-0) 2-0
Blaydes/Pinto Sansano: N/A (3-1) 3-1
Perez Peña/Ratiu: N/A (2-4) 2-4
Perez Peña/Jacques: N/A (1-0) 1-0
Paulsell/Pinto Sansano: N/A (3-5) 3-5
Perez Pena/Vulpitta: N/A (7-2) 7-2
Colby/Ratiu: N/A (0-2) 0-2
Doubles (Players): Overall:
Freddy Blaydes: 10-5 (8-5) 18-10
Ryan Colby: 7-4 (4-7) 11-11
Filipe Costa: 2-3 (N/A) 2-3
Parker Jacques: 0-4 (1-0) 1-4
Cyrus Mahjoob: 2-3 (N/A) 2-3
Parker Mariencheck: 0-4 (N/A) 0-4
Thomas Paulsell: 7-4 (7-10) 14-14
Miguel Perez Peña: 5-5 (10-6) 15-11
Oscar Pinto Sansano: 5-5 (6-6) 11-11
Niels Ratiu: 10-5 (9-10) 19-15
Gabriele Vulpitta: N/A (9-2) 9-2
*Arda Azkara, Cooper Johnson and Gabriele Vulpitta are entering their first semester with Georgia.
** Davis Taylor did not feature in ITA-sanctioned matches during the fall.
On The Cards: In the last 20 matches in all competitions between Georgia and Florida, the SEC rivals are an even 10-10. Interestingly, each program holds a winning record of 4-3 during that 20-match stretch when playing on the road. When the teams have met in ITA-sanctioned matches, Florida holds a 1-3 edge, whereas when the teams have met in the SEC tournament, Georgia holds a 2-0 lead.
Against South Carolina, Georgia is 15-5 in the last 20 contests boasting a 9-1 record at home during that time, as well as a 5-2 record on the road.
Georgia's .792 winning rate versus South Carolina and .663 against Florida are its eighth and 12th best rates, respectively, amongst all series histories with SEC teams.
Last Time Out: Last Thursday, Georgia defeated No. 56 Vanderbilt at home, 4-1.
The Commodores took the doubles point with wins on courts two and three. No. 26 Freddy Blaydes/Niels Ratiu defeated No. 37 Nathan Cox/Michael Ross on court one, 6-4.
In singles, needing four, Georgia jumped out to first sets leads on five of six courts. No. 34 Ryan Colby and No. 25 Thomas Paulsell were first off for the Bulldogs with 6-3, 6-1 and 6-3, 6-4 wins, respectively. Ratiu followed up with a straight set win on court give - two 7-6(5) tiebreaker sets. Senior Oscar Pinto Sansano clinched the win on court four in victory over Henry Ruger, 7-5, 6-3.
On Saturday, Georgia once against needed four singles wins to clinch the match after Ole Miss grabbed doubles wins on courts one and two. Miguel Perez Peña/Gabriele Vulpitta defeated Noah Schlagenhauf/Loan Lestir, 6-4.
Ratiu and Paulsell led off in singles with wins on courts five and three each. Pinto Sansano put Georgia one away after defeating Lestir on court four, 6-2, 6-2. Colby clinched the match on court two with another 6-2, 6-2 win, and the two schools played out the remaining courts. Vulpitta ran out victorious on court six, 6-3, 6-3 before Perez Peña secured the singles sweep with a three set win on court one.
After the Ole Miss match, Georgia rotated the singles lineup against N.C. A&T State. Georgia won 5-1, and sophomore Parker Jacques recorded his first career match-clinching win on court six.
Strong Starts from the Spaniards: Senior Miguel Perez Peña made his best start in dual match play of his career at 6-0 following the match against No. 5 Virginia. Perez Peña now sits at 11-3 this spring.
More, Perez Peña's record this spring includes three ranked wins agaisnt No. 115 Ioannis Xilas (Wake Forest), No. 53 Jaden Weekes (Kentucky) and No. 16 Shunsuke Mitsui (Tennessee) - the senior's highest ranked win of his career. Further, Perez Peña currently holds a 7-2 record in doubles with Gabriele Vulpitta.
Senior Oscar Pinto Sansano not only leads the teams in wins but also the SEC with 16 singles wins this spring. After moving up from court five to four at the start of conference play, Pinto Sansano has gone 7-2 against SEC opponents. Of Pinto Sansano's 16 wins this spring, all but one have come in straight sets.
Consistent Colby: In his second full season with the Bulldogs, senior Ryan Colby has cemented his spot near the top of the lineup for Georgia.
At this stage of the season, Colby sits at 11-4 in dual singles with five ranked wins - all inside the top 90 in the country. A list of his ranked victories are compiled below:
Feb. 1, 2025: 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4 vs. No. 7 DK Suresh (Wake Forest)
Feb. 24, 2025: 6-3, 6-3 vs. No. 31 Alex Kotzen (Tennessee)
Feb. 28, 2025: 6-1, 6-0 vs. No. 59 Roan Jones (Alabama)
Mar. 15, 2025: 6-2, 6-4 vs. No. 88 Petar Jovanovic (Mississippi State)
Mar. 23, 2025: 6-1, 6-4 vs. No. 80 Lukas Palovic (Arkansas)
10 of the senior's 11 wins this spring have come in straight sets. The one three set victory came against his highest ranked opponent in Wake Forest's Suresh. Colby has played on courts one, two and three this spring, holding a 1-2 record on the top court, going 9-2 just below and maintaining a 1-0 mark on the third.
Positive Paulsell: Alongside Perez Peña, Thomas Paulsell is the only four-year senior on Georgia's roster. Each year, Paulsell has seen an uptick in key stats to his name.
Since his freshman year, Paulsell has worked his way up to the top courts for the Bulldogs. More, the senior has earned more ranked wins in each season that he has spent at Georgia beginning with one his freshman year, seven in his junior year and nine already this season. More, Paulsell is on pace for at least six SEC wins this season which would be a career-best, as well as - at least - nine dual-match singles wins, which would also be a career-best.
Freshman Finding Form: Freshman Gabriele Vulpitta, in his first season with the Bulldogs, has begun to find his form for Georgia.
In SEC play, Vulpitta owns a 4-3 mark in singles, including three match-clinching wins on court six. In total his season, Vulpitta now has five match-clinching wins and three point-clinching wins.
Top 25 Wins: Since 2020, Georgia has amassed 32 top-25 wins in regular season and post-season play. A list of each top-25 victory is compiled below.
2020: 4-2 vs. No. 10 Tennessee, 4-0 vs. No. 3 Ohio State, 4-1 vs. No. 11 Ohio State
2021: 4-3 vs. No. 14 N.C. State, 5-2 vs. No. 22 Mississippi State, 4-2 vs. No. 21 UCF, 4-3 vs. No. 20 Kentucky, 4-2 vs. No. 8 Texas A&M, 4-0 vs. No. 25 Texas Tech, 4-3 vs. No. 6 North Carolina
2022: 4-3 vs. No. 16 N.C. State, 4-3 vs. No. 6 Texas, 5-2 vs. No. 23 Mississippi State, 4-3 vs. No. 14 South Carolina, 4-2 vs. No. 5 Tennessee, 4-0 vs. No. 9 Ole Miss, 5-2 vs. No. 18 Alabama
2023: 4-3 vs. No. 16 Stanford, 4-3 vs. No. 8 South Carolina, 4-2 vs. No. 6 USC, 6-1 vs. No. 14 Auburn, 4-3 vs. No. 18 Tennessee, 5-2 vs. No. 4 Kentucky, 4-0 vs. No. 5 South Carolina, 4-3 vs. No. 20 Florida, 6-1 vs. No. 20 Mississippi State, 7-0 vs. No. 25 Ole Miss, 4-0 vs. No. 24 Florida, 4-0 vs. No. 21 Texas A&M, 4-2 vs. No. 10 Harvard
2024: 5-2 vs. No. 21 Alabama
2025 (so far): 4-2 vs. No. 16 Tennessee, 4-3 vs. No. 16 Mississippi State
Award-Winning: The week of Mar. 12-18, freshman Gabriele Vulpitta was named the SEC Co-Freshman of the Week for his performance against Mississippi State. Texas freshman Timo Legout was also recognized as Co-Freshman of the Week.
Vulpitta recorded his third straight match-clinching win for Georgia against No. 16 Mississippi State to improve the team's record to 4-2 in conference play. After Mississippi State took the doubles point, Georgia needed four of the six courts in singles to walk out victors. After results came in on courts one through five, the overall match was tied 3-3; Vulpitta's match on court six would decide the match. In his first set, Vulpitta and Cortes headed to a tiebreak. Down 2-6 in the tiebreak, Vulpitta rallied winning five straight games before ultimately grabbing the first set 7-6 with a 10-8 decision in the tiebreak. Cortes took the second set, pitting the two freshmen in a third. Up 3-2 in the third set, Vulpitta won the three of the final four games to seal Georgia's second top 20 victory of the season.
Following the first week of spring action, sophomore Niels Ratiu was announced as the first SEC men's tennis player of the week for the 2025 season.
Ratiu was efficient in the home openers for the Bulldogs. In singles play, Ratiu dispatched Mercer's Fouilhoux on court four in straight sets 6-0, 6-4 earning Georgia it's second singles point of the match. In the second match, Ratiu moved up to court two for the Bulldogs, blanking his opponent, Presbyterian's Pedro Cardoso, in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0 – the Bulldogs' first singles point of the match. Ratiu's appearance on court two against Presbyterian is his fourth career appearance in the position for Georgia. In doubles play, Ratiu maintained his court one presence from his freshman season playing alongside freshman Gabriele Vulpitta. The duo earned their first two wins over Mercer's No. 55 Stefanovic/Fouilhoux and Presbyterian's Mamalat/Vasilakis winning both matches 6-0. With the win over No. 55 Stefanovic/Fouilhoux, Ratiu now has 13 career ranked doubles wins and his first with Vulpitta.
Rank the Dawgs: The Bulldogs improved to No. 26 in the ITA team rankings poll this week - the team's highest ranking since Feb. 7, 2024.
In singles, Ryan Colby led off at No. 27 followed quickly by Thomas Paulsell at No. 32. Miguel Perez Peña rounded out the trio of Dawgs in the top 50 at No. 43. In doubles, Paulsell/Colby would be regarded as the No. 17 pairing, Freddy Blaydes/Niels Ratiu at No. 47 and Perez Peña/Oscar Pinto Sansano at No. 60.
Across the SEC: Georgia is one of two schools in the SEC to have at least three players ranked inside the top-50 of the ITA singles rankings. Texas' Timo Legout, Sebastian Gorzny and Pierre-Yves Bailly all feature inside the top-50, just as Georgia's Paulsell, Perez Peña and Colby do.
Interestingly, Georgia is one of three schools - alongside Tennessee and Texas - in the SEC with at least two players in the top 40 of the singles rankings.
On the doubles side, the Bulldogs are the only program in the SEC with three pairings ranked in the top 60 of the rankings.
New Faces, New Places: The Bulldogs welcomed three new faces to Athens for the 2025 season, with a key signing for the fall 2025 class.
VCU transfer Oscar Pinto Sansano joined the ranks for the fall campaign. Pinto Sansano began his collegiate career at Arkansas and compiled a 7-14 singles dual match record before spending transferring to VCU for two seasons. With VCU, Pinto Sansano held a 20-5 overall singles dual match record and was ranked as high as No. 31 in ITA doubles ranking. Prior to his collegiate career, he was regarded as the No. 53 junior in UTR world rankings.
In January, Grand Slam champion Gabriele Vulpitta arrived in Athens for the 2025 season and beyond. Vulpitta, a native of Rome, Italy, boasts an impressive resume with a junior doubles title at Wimbledon, as well as finishing as a 2023 junior doubles Roland Garros finalist. He also held career-high ATP rankings of No. 747 in doubles and No. 1168 in singles with a Universal Tennis Rating of 13.23. More, New Mexico transfer Arda Azkara now dons the red and black. Azkara compiled 50 singles wins with the Lobos and was named the Mountain West Co-Freshman of the Year in 2022. After his sophomore and junior seasons, Azkara became the first Mountain West player to earn back-to-back Player of the Year honors since Oliver Maiberger of San Diego State University from 2001-2003. The Turkish native recorded an 11-0 record at No. 1 singles for the Lobos last season and holds a 13.15 Universal Tennis Rating. Georgia native Cooper Johnson will join the Bulldogs in January. Johnson holds career-high recruiting rankings of No. 1 in the state of Georgia and No. 21 nationally. He holds a Universal Tennis Rating of 11.9 with a 3-2 record against other five-star recruits. Johnson also holds an ITF junior ranking of 3,157 and an ITF World Tennis Number of 16.5
Blue-chip recruit and Anderson, S.C. native Noah Johnston signed with Georgia for the fall of 2025, head coach Jamie Hunt announced last fall. The former No. 1 overall recruit in the nation holds a 5-5 record against fellow blue-chip prospects and a career-high ITF junior ranking of 50. Johnston has recent singles and
doubles wins at the J200 Tampico, a doubles championship at the J300 Barranquilla, and a doubles championship at the J300 San Jose while also featuring in the junior doubles draw of the 144th edition of the U.S. Open.
Head Coach Jamie Hunt: Jamie Hunt, who was part of Georgia's 2007 and 2008 NCAA National Championship teams as a player and served seven years on the Georgia men's tennis staff as an associate head coach, was tabbed to lead the Bulldogs' men's tennis program on Feb. 27, 2024.
Since returning to Athens in 2017, Hunt has twice been named the ITA Southeast Region Coach of the Year and helped the Bulldogs capture the 2023 SEC Championship with a perfect league record.
Hunt played for Coach Diaz from 2007-2010 and helped lead Georgia to a pair of national championships. Following his playing career, Hunt made his way to Nashville to become an assistant coach at Vanderbilt.
Hunt was a star tennis player and leader for the Bulldogs' tennis program from 2007 through 2010. His 116 singles wins rank 12th all-time in school history for the four-time All-SEC selection, while his combined singles and doubles record of 238-80 ranks third in the Georgia record book.
Hunt and his wife Kyndal Edwards Hunt met as seniors at the University of Georgia and have five children: Daughter Blakely, son Hayes, twins -- daughter Macy and son Hudson -- and son Ford.
*PDF of Full Match Notes
Match 22 – at No. 32 Florida
Thursday, Apr. 3, 2025
5:00 p.m. E.T.
Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex
Live Streaming: https://gado.gs/2db
Instagram: @UGATennis | X: @UGATennis | Facebook: UGAMensTennis
Match 23 – at No. 21 South Carolina
Saturday, Apr. 5, 2025
1:00 p.m. E.T.
Carolina Tennis Center
Live Streaming: https://gado.gs/cxz
Live Stats: https://gado.gs/cxy
Instagram: @UGATennis | X: @UGATennis | Facebook: UGAMensTennis
BULLDOG BULLETIN
The First Serve: The University of Georgia men's tennis team went 3-0 last week picking up two wins against SEC opponents against No. 56 Vanderbilt and No. 49 Ole Miss before defeating North Carolina A&T State to close out the weekend.
Georgia holds an all time record of 65-33 against Florida, last defeating the Gators during the 2023 SEC tournament in Auburn. In doubles, the Bulldogs took the doubles point off a win on court one from No. 7 Ethan Quinn/Trent Bryde over No. 4 Axel Nefve/Will Grant, 6-4, before Blake Croyder/Britton Johnston clinched the point on court three, 6-1 over Lukas Greif/Jonah Braswell. In singles, Teodor Giusca led off with 6-3, 6-3 victory over Tanapatt Nirundorn on court six before Miguel Perez Peña won on court five, 6-2, 6-3 over Nate Bonetto. No. 4 Quinn seal the 4-0 sweep on court one over No. 37 Nefve, 6-4, 6-4.
Florida checked in this week at No. 32 in this week's ITA rankings coming off of a 4-1 record in the last five matches. This year, the Gators have knocked off the likes of Auburn, Alabama, and Kentucky in SEC play and have protected their home court in all but one match (5-2 loss to Texas). Last year, Florida grabbed a win in the SEC tournament before falling in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Two players - No. 68 Jeremy Jin and No. 95 Adhithya Ganesan - featured in this week's ITA rankings with doubles pairings No. 23 Henry Jefferson/Tanapatt Nirundorn and No. 70 Adhithya Ganesan/Tanapatt Nirundorn maintaining their stature in this week's poll. The Gators have four freshman (Cordova, Segado, Villard and Weintraub), four sophomores (Edengren, Ganesan, Jefferson and Jin), one junior (Nirundorn), one redshirt senior (Johnson) and one graduate (Paliska) on the roster.
Florida holds winning records on each singles court this spring except for court two where the team has gone collectively 7-8 (.467). Interestingly, the Bulldogs own a collective 15-3 record (.833) on court two - the highest win percentage of any court for Georgia this year. More, two of the six projected singles players for the Gators enter the match with a multi-match winning streak whereas all six projected singles players for Georgia enter with a multi-match winning streak.
Against South Carolina, the Bulldogs are 42-11 all time last taking down the Gamecocks in 2023 in Columbia, 4-0 in a No. 7 at No. 5 contest. Phillip Henning/Teodor Giusca went first in doubles defeating No. 31 Jake Beasley/James Story on court two, 6-3, before No. 7 Ethan Quinn/Trent Bryde clinched the point on court one, 6-3 over No. 1 Connor Thomson/Toby Samuel. In singles, the three bottom courts moved swiftly to sweep the road match, all three in straight sets. Giusca won 6-4, 6-2 over Beasley on court six and No. 107 Blake Croyder defeated No. 120 Raphael Lambling, 6-3, 6-3. Miguel Perez Peña sealed the match on five with a 6-3, 6-2 result over No. 88 Casey Hoole.
The Gamecocks are ranked No. 21 in the country after impressive results over No. 19 Alabama, No. 18 Oklahoma and No. 12 Texas A&M. South Carolina is 14-6 (8-3 SEC) having dropped conference matches to No. 20 Mississippi State, No. 31 Kentucky and No. 4 Texas. In the last five matches, the Gamecocks are 3-2. Last year, South Carolina reached the championship game of the SEC tournament before falling in the round of 16 of the NCAA tournament, finishing the season at 19-15 (4-8 SEC). In singles, No. 42 Connor Thomson, No. 98 Sean Daryabeigi and No. 111 Jelani Sarr feature with No. 4 Connor Thomson/Lucas Andrade da Silva in the doubles poll. On the roster, the Gamecocks have five freshmen (Avram, Gazeu, Henceroth, Karahan and Stenzer), two sophomores (Daryabeigi and Sarr), one junior (Andrada da Silva), one senior (Hoole) and one graduate (Thomson).
The 2024 Southern Intercollegiate Championships featured seven Bulldog vs. Gamecock matches. Georgia holds the slight edge in the battles winning four of the seven with Freddy Blaydes defeating Atakan Karahan, Ryan Colby defeating Jelani Sarr, Thomas Paulsell defeating Sean Daryabeigi and Niels Ratiu defeating Lucas Andrade da Silva.
Prior to the dual match season, the Bulldogs put together several strong performances through the fall. Headlined by Thomas Paulsell's round of 16 run in the NCAA Singles Championships, three Bulldogs (Paulsell, Perez Peña and Pinto Sansano) qualified for the NCAA individual tournament. Paulsell qualified for the championships by way of finishing as a semi-finalist at the ITA Conference Masters Championships in Rome, Ga. Perez Peña qualified after being crowned co-champion of the ITA Southeast Regional, and Pinto Sansano after winning the 5-8 playoff at the ITA South Sectional. Notably, by reaching the round of 16 in the singles tournament, Paulsell was recognized as the program's 55th All-American.
The Bulldogs culled together 77 singles wins in the fall, 13 of which were over ranked opponents. In doubles, Georgia had 24 total wins - eight ranked. The Bulldogs individual records from the fall (spring dual match records in parentheses) are compiled below:
Singles: Overall:
Freddy Blaydes: 5-3 (2-2) 7-5
Ryan Colby: 11-7 (11-4) 22-11
Filipe Costa: 2-5 (3-1) 5-6
Parker Jacques: 5-3 (1-0) 6-3
Cyrus Mahjoob: 6-4 (3-0) 9-4
Parker Mariencheck: 2-5 (1-0) 3-5
Thomas Paulsell: 13-6 (8-6) 21-12
Miguel Perez Peña: 9-6 (11-3) 20-9
Oscar Pinto Sansano: 9-6 (16-4) 25-10
Niels Ratiu: 6-5 (11-5) 17-10
Gabriele Vulpitta: N/A (7-6) 7-6
Doubles (Teams): Overall:
Blaydes/Ratiu: 10-5 (5-4) 15-9
Paulsell/Colby: 7-4 (4-5) 11-9
Perez Peña/Pinto Sansano: 5-5 (N/A) 5-5
Costa/Mahjoob: 2-3 (N/A) 2-3
Jacques/Mariencheck: 0-4 (N/A) 0-4
Ratiu/Vulpitta: N/A (2-0) 2-0
Blaydes/Pinto Sansano: N/A (3-1) 3-1
Perez Peña/Ratiu: N/A (2-4) 2-4
Perez Peña/Jacques: N/A (1-0) 1-0
Paulsell/Pinto Sansano: N/A (3-5) 3-5
Perez Pena/Vulpitta: N/A (7-2) 7-2
Colby/Ratiu: N/A (0-2) 0-2
Doubles (Players): Overall:
Freddy Blaydes: 10-5 (8-5) 18-10
Ryan Colby: 7-4 (4-7) 11-11
Filipe Costa: 2-3 (N/A) 2-3
Parker Jacques: 0-4 (1-0) 1-4
Cyrus Mahjoob: 2-3 (N/A) 2-3
Parker Mariencheck: 0-4 (N/A) 0-4
Thomas Paulsell: 7-4 (7-10) 14-14
Miguel Perez Peña: 5-5 (10-6) 15-11
Oscar Pinto Sansano: 5-5 (6-6) 11-11
Niels Ratiu: 10-5 (9-10) 19-15
Gabriele Vulpitta: N/A (9-2) 9-2
*Arda Azkara, Cooper Johnson and Gabriele Vulpitta are entering their first semester with Georgia.
** Davis Taylor did not feature in ITA-sanctioned matches during the fall.
On The Cards: In the last 20 matches in all competitions between Georgia and Florida, the SEC rivals are an even 10-10. Interestingly, each program holds a winning record of 4-3 during that 20-match stretch when playing on the road. When the teams have met in ITA-sanctioned matches, Florida holds a 1-3 edge, whereas when the teams have met in the SEC tournament, Georgia holds a 2-0 lead.
Against South Carolina, Georgia is 15-5 in the last 20 contests boasting a 9-1 record at home during that time, as well as a 5-2 record on the road.
Georgia's .792 winning rate versus South Carolina and .663 against Florida are its eighth and 12th best rates, respectively, amongst all series histories with SEC teams.
Last Time Out: Last Thursday, Georgia defeated No. 56 Vanderbilt at home, 4-1.
The Commodores took the doubles point with wins on courts two and three. No. 26 Freddy Blaydes/Niels Ratiu defeated No. 37 Nathan Cox/Michael Ross on court one, 6-4.
In singles, needing four, Georgia jumped out to first sets leads on five of six courts. No. 34 Ryan Colby and No. 25 Thomas Paulsell were first off for the Bulldogs with 6-3, 6-1 and 6-3, 6-4 wins, respectively. Ratiu followed up with a straight set win on court give - two 7-6(5) tiebreaker sets. Senior Oscar Pinto Sansano clinched the win on court four in victory over Henry Ruger, 7-5, 6-3.
On Saturday, Georgia once against needed four singles wins to clinch the match after Ole Miss grabbed doubles wins on courts one and two. Miguel Perez Peña/Gabriele Vulpitta defeated Noah Schlagenhauf/Loan Lestir, 6-4.
Ratiu and Paulsell led off in singles with wins on courts five and three each. Pinto Sansano put Georgia one away after defeating Lestir on court four, 6-2, 6-2. Colby clinched the match on court two with another 6-2, 6-2 win, and the two schools played out the remaining courts. Vulpitta ran out victorious on court six, 6-3, 6-3 before Perez Peña secured the singles sweep with a three set win on court one.
After the Ole Miss match, Georgia rotated the singles lineup against N.C. A&T State. Georgia won 5-1, and sophomore Parker Jacques recorded his first career match-clinching win on court six.
Strong Starts from the Spaniards: Senior Miguel Perez Peña made his best start in dual match play of his career at 6-0 following the match against No. 5 Virginia. Perez Peña now sits at 11-3 this spring.
More, Perez Peña's record this spring includes three ranked wins agaisnt No. 115 Ioannis Xilas (Wake Forest), No. 53 Jaden Weekes (Kentucky) and No. 16 Shunsuke Mitsui (Tennessee) - the senior's highest ranked win of his career. Further, Perez Peña currently holds a 7-2 record in doubles with Gabriele Vulpitta.
Senior Oscar Pinto Sansano not only leads the teams in wins but also the SEC with 16 singles wins this spring. After moving up from court five to four at the start of conference play, Pinto Sansano has gone 7-2 against SEC opponents. Of Pinto Sansano's 16 wins this spring, all but one have come in straight sets.
Consistent Colby: In his second full season with the Bulldogs, senior Ryan Colby has cemented his spot near the top of the lineup for Georgia.
At this stage of the season, Colby sits at 11-4 in dual singles with five ranked wins - all inside the top 90 in the country. A list of his ranked victories are compiled below:
Feb. 1, 2025: 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4 vs. No. 7 DK Suresh (Wake Forest)
Feb. 24, 2025: 6-3, 6-3 vs. No. 31 Alex Kotzen (Tennessee)
Feb. 28, 2025: 6-1, 6-0 vs. No. 59 Roan Jones (Alabama)
Mar. 15, 2025: 6-2, 6-4 vs. No. 88 Petar Jovanovic (Mississippi State)
Mar. 23, 2025: 6-1, 6-4 vs. No. 80 Lukas Palovic (Arkansas)
10 of the senior's 11 wins this spring have come in straight sets. The one three set victory came against his highest ranked opponent in Wake Forest's Suresh. Colby has played on courts one, two and three this spring, holding a 1-2 record on the top court, going 9-2 just below and maintaining a 1-0 mark on the third.
Positive Paulsell: Alongside Perez Peña, Thomas Paulsell is the only four-year senior on Georgia's roster. Each year, Paulsell has seen an uptick in key stats to his name.
Since his freshman year, Paulsell has worked his way up to the top courts for the Bulldogs. More, the senior has earned more ranked wins in each season that he has spent at Georgia beginning with one his freshman year, seven in his junior year and nine already this season. More, Paulsell is on pace for at least six SEC wins this season which would be a career-best, as well as - at least - nine dual-match singles wins, which would also be a career-best.
Freshman Finding Form: Freshman Gabriele Vulpitta, in his first season with the Bulldogs, has begun to find his form for Georgia.
In SEC play, Vulpitta owns a 4-3 mark in singles, including three match-clinching wins on court six. In total his season, Vulpitta now has five match-clinching wins and three point-clinching wins.
Top 25 Wins: Since 2020, Georgia has amassed 32 top-25 wins in regular season and post-season play. A list of each top-25 victory is compiled below.
2020: 4-2 vs. No. 10 Tennessee, 4-0 vs. No. 3 Ohio State, 4-1 vs. No. 11 Ohio State
2021: 4-3 vs. No. 14 N.C. State, 5-2 vs. No. 22 Mississippi State, 4-2 vs. No. 21 UCF, 4-3 vs. No. 20 Kentucky, 4-2 vs. No. 8 Texas A&M, 4-0 vs. No. 25 Texas Tech, 4-3 vs. No. 6 North Carolina
2022: 4-3 vs. No. 16 N.C. State, 4-3 vs. No. 6 Texas, 5-2 vs. No. 23 Mississippi State, 4-3 vs. No. 14 South Carolina, 4-2 vs. No. 5 Tennessee, 4-0 vs. No. 9 Ole Miss, 5-2 vs. No. 18 Alabama
2023: 4-3 vs. No. 16 Stanford, 4-3 vs. No. 8 South Carolina, 4-2 vs. No. 6 USC, 6-1 vs. No. 14 Auburn, 4-3 vs. No. 18 Tennessee, 5-2 vs. No. 4 Kentucky, 4-0 vs. No. 5 South Carolina, 4-3 vs. No. 20 Florida, 6-1 vs. No. 20 Mississippi State, 7-0 vs. No. 25 Ole Miss, 4-0 vs. No. 24 Florida, 4-0 vs. No. 21 Texas A&M, 4-2 vs. No. 10 Harvard
2024: 5-2 vs. No. 21 Alabama
2025 (so far): 4-2 vs. No. 16 Tennessee, 4-3 vs. No. 16 Mississippi State
Award-Winning: The week of Mar. 12-18, freshman Gabriele Vulpitta was named the SEC Co-Freshman of the Week for his performance against Mississippi State. Texas freshman Timo Legout was also recognized as Co-Freshman of the Week.
Vulpitta recorded his third straight match-clinching win for Georgia against No. 16 Mississippi State to improve the team's record to 4-2 in conference play. After Mississippi State took the doubles point, Georgia needed four of the six courts in singles to walk out victors. After results came in on courts one through five, the overall match was tied 3-3; Vulpitta's match on court six would decide the match. In his first set, Vulpitta and Cortes headed to a tiebreak. Down 2-6 in the tiebreak, Vulpitta rallied winning five straight games before ultimately grabbing the first set 7-6 with a 10-8 decision in the tiebreak. Cortes took the second set, pitting the two freshmen in a third. Up 3-2 in the third set, Vulpitta won the three of the final four games to seal Georgia's second top 20 victory of the season.
Following the first week of spring action, sophomore Niels Ratiu was announced as the first SEC men's tennis player of the week for the 2025 season.
Ratiu was efficient in the home openers for the Bulldogs. In singles play, Ratiu dispatched Mercer's Fouilhoux on court four in straight sets 6-0, 6-4 earning Georgia it's second singles point of the match. In the second match, Ratiu moved up to court two for the Bulldogs, blanking his opponent, Presbyterian's Pedro Cardoso, in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0 – the Bulldogs' first singles point of the match. Ratiu's appearance on court two against Presbyterian is his fourth career appearance in the position for Georgia. In doubles play, Ratiu maintained his court one presence from his freshman season playing alongside freshman Gabriele Vulpitta. The duo earned their first two wins over Mercer's No. 55 Stefanovic/Fouilhoux and Presbyterian's Mamalat/Vasilakis winning both matches 6-0. With the win over No. 55 Stefanovic/Fouilhoux, Ratiu now has 13 career ranked doubles wins and his first with Vulpitta.
Rank the Dawgs: The Bulldogs improved to No. 26 in the ITA team rankings poll this week - the team's highest ranking since Feb. 7, 2024.
In singles, Ryan Colby led off at No. 27 followed quickly by Thomas Paulsell at No. 32. Miguel Perez Peña rounded out the trio of Dawgs in the top 50 at No. 43. In doubles, Paulsell/Colby would be regarded as the No. 17 pairing, Freddy Blaydes/Niels Ratiu at No. 47 and Perez Peña/Oscar Pinto Sansano at No. 60.
Across the SEC: Georgia is one of two schools in the SEC to have at least three players ranked inside the top-50 of the ITA singles rankings. Texas' Timo Legout, Sebastian Gorzny and Pierre-Yves Bailly all feature inside the top-50, just as Georgia's Paulsell, Perez Peña and Colby do.
Interestingly, Georgia is one of three schools - alongside Tennessee and Texas - in the SEC with at least two players in the top 40 of the singles rankings.
On the doubles side, the Bulldogs are the only program in the SEC with three pairings ranked in the top 60 of the rankings.
New Faces, New Places: The Bulldogs welcomed three new faces to Athens for the 2025 season, with a key signing for the fall 2025 class.
VCU transfer Oscar Pinto Sansano joined the ranks for the fall campaign. Pinto Sansano began his collegiate career at Arkansas and compiled a 7-14 singles dual match record before spending transferring to VCU for two seasons. With VCU, Pinto Sansano held a 20-5 overall singles dual match record and was ranked as high as No. 31 in ITA doubles ranking. Prior to his collegiate career, he was regarded as the No. 53 junior in UTR world rankings.
In January, Grand Slam champion Gabriele Vulpitta arrived in Athens for the 2025 season and beyond. Vulpitta, a native of Rome, Italy, boasts an impressive resume with a junior doubles title at Wimbledon, as well as finishing as a 2023 junior doubles Roland Garros finalist. He also held career-high ATP rankings of No. 747 in doubles and No. 1168 in singles with a Universal Tennis Rating of 13.23. More, New Mexico transfer Arda Azkara now dons the red and black. Azkara compiled 50 singles wins with the Lobos and was named the Mountain West Co-Freshman of the Year in 2022. After his sophomore and junior seasons, Azkara became the first Mountain West player to earn back-to-back Player of the Year honors since Oliver Maiberger of San Diego State University from 2001-2003. The Turkish native recorded an 11-0 record at No. 1 singles for the Lobos last season and holds a 13.15 Universal Tennis Rating. Georgia native Cooper Johnson will join the Bulldogs in January. Johnson holds career-high recruiting rankings of No. 1 in the state of Georgia and No. 21 nationally. He holds a Universal Tennis Rating of 11.9 with a 3-2 record against other five-star recruits. Johnson also holds an ITF junior ranking of 3,157 and an ITF World Tennis Number of 16.5
Blue-chip recruit and Anderson, S.C. native Noah Johnston signed with Georgia for the fall of 2025, head coach Jamie Hunt announced last fall. The former No. 1 overall recruit in the nation holds a 5-5 record against fellow blue-chip prospects and a career-high ITF junior ranking of 50. Johnston has recent singles and
doubles wins at the J200 Tampico, a doubles championship at the J300 Barranquilla, and a doubles championship at the J300 San Jose while also featuring in the junior doubles draw of the 144th edition of the U.S. Open.
Head Coach Jamie Hunt: Jamie Hunt, who was part of Georgia's 2007 and 2008 NCAA National Championship teams as a player and served seven years on the Georgia men's tennis staff as an associate head coach, was tabbed to lead the Bulldogs' men's tennis program on Feb. 27, 2024.
Since returning to Athens in 2017, Hunt has twice been named the ITA Southeast Region Coach of the Year and helped the Bulldogs capture the 2023 SEC Championship with a perfect league record.
Hunt played for Coach Diaz from 2007-2010 and helped lead Georgia to a pair of national championships. Following his playing career, Hunt made his way to Nashville to become an assistant coach at Vanderbilt.
Hunt was a star tennis player and leader for the Bulldogs' tennis program from 2007 through 2010. His 116 singles wins rank 12th all-time in school history for the four-time All-SEC selection, while his combined singles and doubles record of 238-80 ranks third in the Georgia record book.
Hunt and his wife Kyndal Edwards Hunt met as seniors at the University of Georgia and have five children: Daughter Blakely, son Hayes, twins -- daughter Macy and son Hudson -- and son Ford.
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Georgia Men's Tennis NCAA Round 2 vs NC State - Postmatch Interview - Coach Hunt
Sunday, May 04
Georgia Men's Tennis NCAA Round 1 vs UNCW - Video Recap
Saturday, May 03
Georgia Men's Tennis SEC Tournament vs Oklahoma Post-match Interview - Coach Hunt
Thursday, April 17
Georgia Men's Tennis Feature - Lifelong Bond: Miguel Perez Peña and Oscar Pinto Sansano
Tuesday, April 15
