Aztec sophomore posts two wins to advance to championship final
Source: goaztecs.com
Photo courtesy goaztecs.com
November 4, 2017 (Las Vegas) - San Diego State sophomore Arnaud Restifo won two singles matches on Saturday to lead a quartet Aztec men’s tennis players at the Larry Easley Memorial Championships on the campus of UNLV.
A transfer from Oklahoma, Restifo posted a pair of three-set victories over successive UCLA opponents, dispatching Bryce Pereira in the quarterfinals, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3, before recording a semifinal triumph over Austin Rapp in nearly identical fashion, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
With his results, Restifo will square off against Max Cressy in the championship final on Sunday morning. Cressy was a straight-set winner over SDSU freshman Ignacio Martinez in the quarterfinals, 6-0, 6-1, before notching a semifinal victory UNLV’s Courtney Lock in three sets, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Earlier, Lock eliminated the Aztecs’ other remaining player in the quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-1 defeat of junior Sander Gjoels-Andersen.
Both of SDSU’s doubles teams came up short against a pair of UNLV tandems in the semifinals. The Aztec pairing of Restifo and Gjoels-Andersen experienced an 8-5 setback at the hands of Lock and Eric Samuelsson, while the duo of Martinez and sophomore Joel Popov dropped an 8-7 heartbreaker to Kevin Chau and Richard Solberg.
Following Sunday’s action, San Diego State will compete in its final tournament of the semester next week at the LMU Fall Invitational Nov. 6-8 in Los Angeles, California.
Larry Easley Memorial Championships
Las Vegas, Nev.
Day Two – SDSU Results Only
Doubles – Semifinals
Kevin Chau/Richard Solberg (UNLV) def. Ignacio Martinez/Joel Popov (SDSU) 8-7
Courtney Lock/Eric Samuelsson (UNLV) def. Sander-Gjoels-Andersen/Arnaud Restifo (SDSU) 8-5
Singles – Quarterfinals
Max Cressy (UCLA) def. Ignacio Martinez (SDSU), 6-0, 6-1
Courtney Lock (UNLV) def. Sander Gjoels-Andersen (SDSU), 6-4, 6-1
Arnaud Restifo (SDSU) def. Bryce Pereira (UCLA), 6-3, 2-6, 6-3
Singles - Semifinals
Arnaud Restifo (SDSU) def. Austin Rapp (UCLA), 6-4, 3-6, 6-4