by Tyler Peck, sports information graduate assistant

VALDOSTA, Ga. - The tennis squads at Georgia College & State University were overpowered today (Feb. 8) getting shut out by third best team in the country on both sides, Valdosta State University. The No. 13 Georgia College men's team moves to 2-1 on the season while the No. 19 Bobcat women's team evens up at 1-1. This marked the first loss for any Bobcat doubles or singles effort this season.

On the women's side, in the top spot for Georgia College, No. 48 Marjorie Ceppo (Sao Paulo, Brazil) was disappointed by Valdosta's No. 13 Dominique Rothlaender 6-1, 6-0. At the number two singles slot, Diane Danna (Saint Germain-En-Laye, France) lost 6-0, 6-4 to No. 11 Natali Gumbrecht.

No. 7 Tina Trautmann took down the Bobcats' Gabby Acuna (Peachtree City. Ga.) 6-2, 6-3 while Gabby's younger sister, Adriana Acuna (Peachtree City, Ga.), lost in matching 6-0 sets to Karine Redon.

Bertille Lion (Saint Cyr, France) succumbed 6-0, 6-1 to No. 39 Raphaelle Durante. Angy Cuellar lost against Kristel de Groot 6-0, 6-1.

The doubles were also a Blazer sweep, allowing just two games to slip away. The duo of Ceppo and Gabby Acuna were beat 8-1 against the No. 3 ranked team of Rothlander and Trautmann. The Bobcat twosome of Danna and Lion lost 8-1 to No. 6 Redon and Durante. In the final doubles match Adriana Acuna and Cuellar were shut out by Gumbrecht and de Groot.

For the men's half, the No. 24-ranked Sao Paulo native duo of Francis Yoshimoto and Joao Casagrande made things interesting in the second doubles slot taking the match into an extra game. However, they were defeated by the Blazers' Florian Halb and Otto Lenhart 9-7.

Senior teammates Justin Pickham (Armidale, Australia) and Erick Siqueria (Sao Paulo, Brazil) lost 8-5 in a match that saw the No. 2 in the country lose to the No. 3 team, Joerg Ekkenga and Leos Jelinek.

In third doubles, Max Beliankou (Minksk, Belarus) and Giovane Nucci (Santa Catarina, Brazil) were swept 8-0 against Michael Kuech and Daniel Dueren.

Again in singles play no Bobcat was able to come away with a victory as No. 9 Halb defeated No. 8 Siqueria 6-4, 6-1 at the number one singles slot. Pickham lost in matching 6-4 sets to Dueren While Yoshimoto, No. 24 in Division II, was taken down 6-2, 6-1 by Valdosta's No. 28 Jelinek.

In fourth singles, Beliankou was also defeated 6-3, 6-2 against No. 10 Ekkenga, and Nucci added a fifth-singles loss 6-0, 6-1 to an overpowering Kuech.

Casagrande lost to Ben Cattan 6-3, 6-3 in the sixth singles match making the Blazers undefeated on the day.

The Bobcat men's and women's teams are back in action Saturday, Feb. 14 at 1 p.m., opening up the home portion of the schedule against Newberry College.

Visit www2.GCSU.edu/Bobcats to nominate your favorite former Bobcats and Colonials to the GCSU Athletics Hall of Fame. The GCSU Department of Athletics sponsors 10 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. As a Division II program, GCSU prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the Bobcats' multiple appearances in post-season competition as well as documented academic success and community-service involvement.