University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
ITA National Indoor Championships
Vols' Run Ends at Indoor Nationals
November 07, 2009 | Men's Tennis
Nov. 7, 2009
Tennessee junior John-Patrick Smith's bid for a second national singles title this fall ended in the semifinals Saturday at the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships in New Haven, Conn.
Junior Boris Conkic and freshman Rhyne Williams also fell in the doubles semifinals, snapping their seven-match winning streak.
Smith, the tournament's top seed, lost to No. 18 Steve Johnson of Southern California 3-6, 6-1, 6-4. It was Smith's first loss in nine matches against ranked opponents.
Smith entered the year as the second-ranked player nationally and ended the fall season with a team-leading 16-3 record. Last month, he became just the third player in history to win the singles and doubles titles at ITA All-American Championships. He teamed up with Conkic to take doubles.
Conkic and Williams were defeated in the semifinals by Standord's Bradley Klahn and Ryan Thacher, the eighth-ranked pair in the county and the tournament's third seed. Conkic and Williams fell behind early and rallied to tie the first set 5-5, but Klahn and Thacher won the next two games to take the set 7-5. The Stanford pair won the second set 6-1.
Conkic and Williams played in three tournaments together and concluded the fall with a 9-2 record with a tournament title at the ITA Ohio Valley Regional Championships. Smith and senior Davey Sandgren lead the Vols in doubles wins with an 11-3 record.
The Indoor Championships was the final fall tournament for the Vols. The team returns to competition in January with two individual events: the SEC Coaches' Indoor Championships and the Sherwood Cup.
ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships
New Haven, Conn.
Singles
Semifinals
(6) Steve Johnson, Southern California, def. (1) John-Patrick Smith, UT, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4
Doubles
Semifinals
(3) Klahn/Thacher, Stanford, def. Conkic/Williams, UT, 7-5, 6-1
Players Mentioned
