The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men's tennis team scored a 7-0 win over The Citadel to open Southern Conference action today.  The Mocs braved the brisk weather on the outdoor courts at the UTC Tennis Center to improve to 10-2 overall and 1-0 in league action. 
 
"This was a typical SoCon match," stated UTC head coach Chuck Merzbacher.  "The conditions were a bit chilly, and there were hard fought matches across the board."
 
UTC won all 10 matches, including a trio of three-setters in singles.  All three doubles tandems won 6-1, with senior Niklas Gerdes and sophomore Tomas Rodriguez improving to 10-0 at No. 2.  Senior Simon Bustamante and sophomore Kerim Hyatt moved to 8-4 at No. 1, and senior Turner Voges and freshman Jeffrey Dewald won for the first time in three matches as a pair at No. 3.
 
"I'm proud of the guys sweeping all the matches," added Merzbacher. "The team showed toughness when needed. We know each SoCon match is going to be a battle, but the doubles set the tone. I like the way we took care of the ball and played smart Mocs doubles."
 
Gerdes kept his impressive No. 1 singles resume clean with a (6-2, 6-0) win over Gavin Stewart.  Gerdes is now 12-0 in the spring and has won 14-straight overall. 
 
Dewald needed three sets at No. 4 to move his singles winning streak to 11 matches.  He defeated Phillip Quinn (2-6, 6-3, 6-4).
 
Rodriguez and Hyatt won at No. 2 and No. 3 in straight sets.  Bustamante improved to 6-1 at No. 5 with his three-set win over Zvonko Bencedic (4-6, 7-5, 6-0).  
 
Up next for the Mocs is a Sunday match at USC Upstate.  The next home date on the schedule is March 6 against Toledo. 
 
Chattanooga 7, The Citadel 0
02/21/2020 at Chattanooga, Tenn. (UTC Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. Niklas Gerdes (UTC) def. Gavin Stewart (CIT) 6-2, 6-0
2. Tomas Rodriguez (UTC) def. Will Graham (CIT) 6-2, 6-2
3. Kerim Hyatt (UTC) def. Noah Nawabi (CIT) 6-2, 6-4
4. Jeffrey Dewald (UTC) def. Phillip Quinn (CIT) 2-6, 6-3, 6-4
5. Simon Bustamante (UTC) def. Zvonko Bencedic (CIT) 4-6, 7-5, 6-0
6. Turner Voges (UTC) def. Jack Pyritz (CIT) 6-1, 2-6, 6-2
 
Doubles competition
1. Simon Bustamante/Kerim Hyatt (UTC) def. Zvonko Bencedic/Gavin Stewart (CIT) 6-1
2. Niklas Gerdes/Tomas Rodriguez (UTC) def. Will Graham/Willem van Zyl (CIT) 6-1
3. Jeffrey Dewald/Turner Voges (UTC) def. Phillip Quinn/Noah Nawabi (CIT) 6-1
 
Match Notes
The Citadel 2-9, 0-1 SoCon
Chattanooga 10-2, 1-0 SoCon
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (2,1,3,5,4,6)
T-2:38 A-25