Wicklund and Theron finish as runners-up in doubles as Tigers finish ITA South Regionals

SEWANEE, Tenn. – Quinn Wicklund and Jordan Theron made an impressive run to the finals of the ITA South Regional Doubles draw but fell just short in a three-set battle against Emory's Christian Liew and Ruilin Feng.

Wicklund and Theron started strong, cruising through their first-round match with an 8-0 win before defeating Methodist University 8-4 in the second round. In the quarterfinals, they edged out Luca Knese and Albert Sitwell of North Carolina Wesleyan in a tight pro-set. The Tigers followed that up with a thrilling semifinal victory over Emory's Charley Force and Ajay Kartik, 6-1, 3-6, 12-10.

In the finals, Wicklund and Theron got off to a fast start, winning the first set 6-2. However, their Emory opponents fought back, taking the second set in a tiebreaker, 6-7 (2), and clinching the final set, 4-6, to secure the title.

Several other Sewanee doubles teams also made solid runs. Talman Ramsey and Henry Hyden, along with Joshua Lively and Charles Pizzuti, reached the round of 16 but fell to Emory teams. Ramsey and Hyden lost a close 6-8 match to Force and Kartik, while Lively and Pizzuti were defeated by the second-seeded pair of Dean Kamenev and Efe Comu, 4-8.

Andre Remi Jakobi and Gil Weston were eliminated in the first round by Emory's Joshua Lai and Alex Marino, 5-8. Mark Motlow and Liam Selvido suffered a heartbreaking loss to North Carolina Wesleyan in a tiebreaker, 8-9 (6), while Drew Rukavina and Max Verellen fell 6-8 in their first-round match.

In singles action, William Lewis advanced to the round of 16 after a 6-0, 6-3 second-round win but fell to top-seeded Comu, 1-6, 3-6. Ramsey and George Thomas Alexander both made strong runs, with Ramsey picking up a 6-0, 6-3 win before retiring due to injury in the third round, and Alexander battling through two rounds before falling to the fifth seed, 2-6, 3-6.

Wicklund, Weston, Hyden, and Verellen all secured first-round wins but were eliminated in the second round. Wicklund took down an Emory opponent in a second-set tiebreaker, while Weston won a three-set battle, 6-4, 3-6, 12-10. Hyden advanced after his opponent retired but lost to the 16th seed, and Verellen eased through his first round, dropping only two games before falling to the 15th seed. Theron also won his first match but lost a tough second-round tiebreaker, 4-6, 6-1, 9-11, to another Emory player.

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Players Mentioned

George Thomas Alexander: 5' 8"; Junior

Henry Hyden: 6' 0"; Sophomore

Talman Ramsey: 5' 9"; Senior

Drew Rukavina: 6' 3"; Sophomore

Liam Selvido: 5' 11"; Senior

Jordan Theron: 6' 4"; Senior

Gil Weston: 5' 11"; Senior

Quinn Wicklund: 6' 3"; Senior

Max Verellen: 6' 2"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

George Thomas Alexander
: 5' 8"; Junior

Henry Hyden
: 6' 0"; Sophomore

Talman Ramsey
: 5' 9"; Senior

Drew Rukavina
: 6' 3"; Sophomore

Liam Selvido
: 5' 11"; Senior

Jordan Theron
: 6' 4"; Senior

Gil Weston
: 5' 11"; Senior

Quinn Wicklund
: 6' 3"; Senior

Max Verellen
: 6' 2"; Freshman