One of the favorites to advance deep in the 2018 NCAA Tournament flexed its muscle during College MatchDay at the USTA National Campus Feb. 9. Ranked No. 4 in the country, Georgia delivered a shutout win with a 4-0 victory over rival Georgia Tech.

“We couldn’t be more pleased,” Georgia head coach Manny Diaz said. “The staff couldn’t be more accommodating. It’s a tremendous experience for the guys and it’s been first class all the way. To play in front of a great crowd here tonight and a national TV audience is great for college tennis and we appreciate everything the USTA is doing.

“I think overall we did a great job. … We didn’t get over confident (after doubles). We knew we had to play well on every court, and we took care of business.”

Georgia (3-0) entered with a roster featuring five singles players ranked in the top 45 of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings. After the Bulldogs took two of the three doubles matches for the 1-0 team lead, they cruised at the No. 1, 5 and 6 singles positions for the final 4-0 margin.

In his 30^th season at Georgia, Diaz acknowledged after the match how events like College MatchDay and college tennis overall can be very important for the game.

“(College tennis) is a tremendous pathway. We have a lot of great coaches and a tremendous support staff for these young players. It gives them good direction and time to mature physically and emotionally. They learn a lot during this first couple of years, and they decide what they want to do and it just gives them a great experience.”

A big hot spot on the night for several fans including Michael Neville were the pre-match activities. “My daughter had lessons today, and we heard about MatchDay from the instructors.” The family then enjoyed their favorite part of the night which was the experienced face painters at the Collegiate Complex.

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs and Yellow Jackets enjoyed a lot of supporters in the stands.

“We are big Georgia fans and alumni of the university. We will support it wherever it goes,” said Pepper Friedman.

It will be a morning start for the next College MatchDay when the men of Oklahoma and Texas A&M get together on Saturday, Feb. 24. First serve is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. ET and it will air live on Tennis Channel.

For College MatchDay ticket information, click on Ticketmaster.com.

No. 4 Georgia 4, Georgia Tech 0

Doubles

No. 1 Carlos Divar/Michael Kay (GT) def. Robert Loeb/Jan Zielinski (UGA) 6-0

No. 2 Walker Duncan/Wayne Montgomery (UGA) def. Elijah Melendez/Daniel Yun (GT) 6-2

No. 3 Paul Oosterbaan/Alex Diaz (UGA) def. Phillip Gresk/Andrew Li (GT) 6-2

Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2

Singles

No. 1 #17 Wayne Montgomery (UGA) def. #39 Carlos Divar (GT) 6-1, 6-2

No. 2 Andrew Li (GT) vs. #45 Nathan Ponwith (UGA) 6-2, 2-5, unfinished

No. 3 #31 Emil Reinberg (UGA) vs. Elijah Melendez (GT) 6-4, 3-4, unfinished

No. 4 #14 Walker Duncan (UGA) vs. Phillip Gresk (GT) 6-3, 4-5, unfinished

No. 5 #26 Jan Zielinski (UGA) def. Chris Yun (GT) 6-1, 6-3

No. 6 Robert Loeb (UGA) def. Daniel Yun (GT) 6-3, 6-1

Order of Finish: 6, 1, 5

Attendance: 724

2018 College MatchDay

Feb. 3 – Florida 3, Florida State 4 (Men)

Feb. 3 – Florida 1, Florida State 4 (Women)

Feb. 9 – Georgia 4, Georgia Tech 0 (Men)

Feb. 24 – Oklahoma vs. Texas A&M (Men) – 10:30 a.m.

March 3 – UCF vs. Michigan (Men) – 12:30 p.m.

March 3 – UCF vs. Michigan (Women) – 12:30 p.m.

April 1 – Florida vs. Texas (Women) – 5 p.m.

April 15 – UCF vs. South Florida (Men) – 5:30 p.m.

*All Times Eastern and Subject to Change