BLACKSBURG – Virginia Tech (10-10, 3-9) earns the No. 11 seed in the ACC Men's Tennis Championship in Cary, N.C., setting up a matchup against sixth-seeded Florida State (17-7, 7-5) on Thursday at 12:30 p.m., per a league release.
The Hokies look to bounce back in the second round of the tournament after a tough 2-5 loss against Clemson to end the season. Tech was unable to secure the doubles point, despite a 6-4 victory for Matt Harper and Alberto Orso on court two.
The bright spots of the finale for Virginia Tech were found on courts two and six. Maxime St. Hilaire earned an upset victory over No. 95 Wissam Abderrahman by scores of 6-0, 1-6, 6-2. On court six, Alberto Orso defeated Maxwell Smith, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, for Tech's second point of the match.
At the time of the bracket's announcement, Virginia Tech ranks 65th nationally, according to the Intercollegiate Tennis Assocation (ITA). In singles play, Ryan Fishback sits at No. 94, and he and Maxime St. Hilaire rank 67th in doubles competition.
Florida State comes into Thursday's match with a 17-7 overall record, which includes a record of 7-5 against ACC competition. They also rank 17th nationally, according to the ITA.
The Seminoles are led in singles by Antoine Cornut-Chauvinc. Cornut-Chauvinc, a native of Lyon, France, boasts an 19-2 dual singles record, with nine of those victories coming in conference play. Another key contributor for the 'Noles has been Jamie Connel, who holds a 16-4 record in dual matches, with an 8-2 record in ACC play.
Florida State has begun nearly every match this season by securing a point in doubles play. A key factor in their success in doubles has been the pairing of Antoine Cornut-Chauvinc and Joshua Dous-Karpenschif, who currently ranked 22nd nationally, according to ITA. They've earned 12 wins playing on court one for the 'Noles this season. Another doubles pairing has stepped up for Florida State, as Loris Pourroy and Youcef Rihane have been strong on court two with a 14-6 record and five wins in ACC play.
In its final regular-season match of the 2023 campaign, Florida State defeated in-state rival Miami, 4-2, at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center in Coral Gables, Fla.
The Hokies aim to end a three-match losing streak to the 'Noles, with their last victory against Florida State coming in March of 2021. In the most recent meeting of the two schools, Florida State defeated Virginia Tech, 6-1, in Tallahassee, Fla.
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