University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
Eastern Kentucky
Vols Win Two in Men's Tennis Opener
January 16, 2016 | Men's Tennis
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Volunteers opened the 2016 men's tennis season Saturday with victories over Southern Illinois and Eastern Kentucky.
The Vols (2-0) dropped just one team point all day, shutting out Southern Illinois 7-0 and beating Eastern Kentucky 6-1.
"It was a great team effort," Tennessee head coach Sam Winterbotham said. "We talked about having the same energy on all six courts, and we did that. That's the basis of any good team: that everyone pulls their weight."
Four Vols won in their dual match debuts for Tennessee: sophomore Preston Touliatos and freshmen Timo Stodder, Jack Heslin and Marshall Sullivan. Touliatos, Stodder and Heslin each went 4-0 on the day, winning all their singles and doubles matches.
"When someone comes out and wins their first college tennis match, it's a big deal," Winterbotham said. "To have Timo, Marshall and Jack Heslin all win their first matches, it was super. Preston has won some matches before as a transfer, but to win his first matches in orange was a special thing, and I'm so proud of those guys."
Tennessee plays another doubleheader Monday, taking on North Florida at 10 a.m. and Mercer at 2 p.m. Admission is free at Goodfriend Tennis Center and parking is available in lot N-2.
NEW AT NO. 1 (PART I)
- Sophomore Igor Smelyanski played his first career matches at No. 1 singles, winning both in straight sets.
- Smelyanski, ranked for the first time at No. 75, defeated SIU's Rigby 6-3, 6-2 and rallied in the second set to beat EKU's Alex Alvaro 6-2, 6-3.
- He upped his win record to a team-leading 17-3. He had just 11 wins as a freshman.
- A new face at No. 1 was inevitable. Mikelis Libietis and Hunter Reese had occupied the top two spots in the lineup the last four years.
NEW AT NO. 1 (PART II)
- Luis Valero and Jack Schipanski played their first career matches at the top of the doubles lineup, going 2-for-2 and picking up a win over the No. 41 pair from SIU.
- Valero and Schipanski entered the spring ranked No. 23 nationally. They are 8-1 this year and are the Vols' only returning duo from last season, having played No. 3 doubles for the Vols in 2015.
THE LAST SHALL BE FIRST
- Freshman Timo Stodder was the last remaining Vol on the singles court in his career debut, beating SIU's Wilder Pimentel in a super tiebreaker 6-2, 6-7(4), [10-7] on court 3.
- Not only was it his first dual match singles win, it was his college debut. He did not play during the fall season.
- His second singles win came much faster. He was the first off the court, dropping only one game on his way to a 6-1, 6-0 win over EKU's Ramon van Flymen.
BOX SCORES
Tennessee 7, Southern Illinois 0

Singles
1. #75 Igor Smelyanski, UT, def. Jonny Rigby, SIU, 6-3, 6-2
2. Luis Valero, UT, def. Michael Kianicka, SIU, 6-4, 6-4
3. Timo Stodder, UT, def. Wilder Pimentel, SIU, 6-2, 6-7 (4), [10-7]
4. Jack Schipanski, UT, def. Alex Pozo, SIU, 6-3, 6-0
5. Preston Touliatos, UT, def. Peter Molloy, SIU, 6-2, 6-2
6. Jack Heslin, UT, def. Thomas Kyle, SIU, 6-1, 6-1
Doubles
1. #23 Schipanski/Valero, UT, def. #41 Kianicka/Rigby, SIU, 6-1
2. Smelyanski/Stodder, UT, def. Pozo/Pimentel, SIU, 6-2
3. Touliatos/Heslin, UT, def. Martinez/Molloy, SIU, 6-4
Order of Finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (6,4,3,1,2,3)
Tennessee 6, Eastern Kentucky 1
Singles
1. #75 Igor Smelyanski, UT, def. Alex Alvaro, EKU, 6-2, 6-3
2. Timo Stodder, UT, def. Ramon van Flymen, EKU 6-1, 6-0
3. Sebastian Mueller, EKU, def. Jack Schipanski, UT, 6-2, 1-6, 1-0 ret.
4. Preston Touliatos, UT, def. Diogo Soares, EKU, 6-3, 6-2
5. Jack Heslin, UT, def. Guillem Sanchis, EKU, 6-1, 6-3
6. Marshall Sullivan, UT, def. Diego Asis, EKU, 3-6, 6-0, 6-1
Doubles
1. #23 Shipanski/Valero, UT, def. Alvaro/van Flymen, EKU, 6-4
2. Smelyanski/Stodder, UT, def. Mueller/Asis, EKU, 6-3
3. Touliatos/Heslin, UT, def. Soares/Graskamp, EKU, 6-2
Order of Finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (2,5,1,3,4,6).
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