Two Tennessee men’s tennis players advanced in the NCAA singles championships Monday.
Graduate student Adam Walton and sophomore Johannus Monday advanced with first-round victories at Khan Outdoor Tennis Center in Champaign, Illinois.
Walton, the nation’s third-ranked singles player, defeated VCU’s Charles Burtimon, 6-4, 6-0. Burtimon entered the match as the No. 90 player in the country.
The two players held serve through the first four games of the opening set before Walton earned a break at deuce to take a 5-4 lead.
Monday won in three sets in the first round, defeating Cornell’s Alafia Ayeni, 7-5, 4-6, 6-2.
Monday, the No. 10 player in the country, trailed 4-1 in the first set and was down a service break before coming back to win the opening set.
Walton and Monday will play in Tuesday’s second-round matches and both would earn All-America honors with wins.
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