Game Pirates Fall To Argos In Semifinals

When the No. 5-ranked Pirates dropped the first set in five of six singles matches against West Florida, things looked bleak. And even though the result went the way of the unbeaten Argos at the end of the day, what transpired between sets one and sets three may have defined the future of Armstrong men's tennis for the next few years.

With a team sporting three freshman, two sophomores and one lone senior, the Pirates battled back against the Argos to force a third set in all six singles matches in the 5-2 semifinal loss to West Florida. Jaan Kononov finished off his opponent 6-0 in the third set at No. 2 singles, and Pablo Gor was up 5-0 in the third of his match at No. 4 singles. The match lasted more than four hours and was clearly more than the Argos could have expected to face, especially after what transpired in the first meeting between the two teams.

Armstrong and West Florida met in February in Valdosta, Ga., in what was the Pirates' first match of the season. West Florida won all three doubles matches relatively easy, but rains forced the cancellation of the rest of the match. Fast forward nearly three months later and the amount of growth the Pirates have displayed on and off the court has been tremendous. The Pirates are national semifinalists for an eighth time in program history but the future clearly looks bright for Armstrong the next few years with the type of experience the returning players garnered today and this week. Tomorrow, the ladies get their chance at another title, but I'm sure the underclassmen you see below will have another chance coming up soon. Go Pirates !