SUMTER, S.C. – Embry-Riddle's
Deni Zmak and
Jaime Sanchez-Canamares Rios advanced through the opening round of the 2014 USTA/ITA National Small College Championships, Thursday at the Palmetto Tennis Center.
Singles play saw Zmak, the tournament's top seed and the defending ITA/NAIA National Champion, pull out a three-set victory in his first match against Nicolas Pinones-Haltenhoff. Pinones-Haltenhoff is no stranger to the ITAnational tournament or Embry-Riddle tennis as he fell to
Patrick Besch in the title match of the 2012 tournament and was part of the doubles team that bested Besch and
Simon Felix in that year's doubles championship. Last season, the AUM senior stood between the Eagles and a doubles title again, but this time Zmak and Felix were able to down the AUM team to take the national crown.
Thursday's meeting marked the first between Zmak and Pinones-Haltenhoff in singles play. Zmak cruised to an easy 6-2 win in the first set, but stumbled in the second as he was bested 6-0 by Pinones-Haltenhoff, forcing a third set to decide the match. The final frame saw the ERAU junior regain his focus and cruise past Pinones-Haltenhoff 6-1 and into the semifinal round where he will face fourth-seed Edberg Espinoza of Lindsey Wilson, who also need three sets to take his opening round match.
A few hours later, Zmak returned to the court, this time in partnership with Sanchez-Canamares in doubles action. The duo topped Georgia Gwinnett's Connor Clements and Lachlan McPhee 6-3, 7-5 and will face Northwestern Ohio's Daniel Rueda and Thommy Johansson in Friday's semifinal.
