Florida State University Athletics
Noles Shine in Battle At The Beach as Connel Wins Tournament
9/20/2023 12:29:00 PM | Men's Tennis
TALLAHASSEE — In the first fall action of the 2023-24 men's tennis season, Florida State junior Jamie Connel won the Battle At The Beach in Destin while freshman Azariah Rusher finished as the runner-up.
Connel went 3-0 in singles play in the tournament, opening with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Georgia State's Gabriele Datei. A 6-2, 6-0 straight-set victory over Luc Hoejimans of Tulane earned Connel his second win. No. 102 Connel's 7-6 (6), 6-2 victory over Middle Tennessee State's Shu Matsuoka crowned him as the tournament's champion.
Florida State brought three newcomers to the tournament as Rusher, Justin Lyons and Carson Cerejo all made their debuts this past weekend.
Rusher, a Del Ray Beach native, earned his first win as a Seminole on Friday with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Georgia State's Edward Tynes. Rusher would go on to record two more singles wins in the weekend en route to being the runner-up, with a 6-0, 6-1 victory on Saturday and a 6-2, 6-4 win over Middle Tennessee State's Karim Al-Amin on Sunday.
Cerejo notched his first singles victory as a Seminole on the tournament's final day with a 7-5, 7-5 win over Kristian Thomas of Middle Tennessee. Connel and Cerejo paired up and recorded an 8-4 doubles win over Igor Mandou Berranger and Kristian Thomas from Middle Tennessee State.
Freshman Justin Lyons' three-set 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7) win over Georgia State's Baran Solver marked his first at Florida State, and the newcomer duo of Rusher and Lyons earned their first doubles victory together on Friday after an 8-5 win.
The Seminoles travel to Austin, Texas to play in the Longhorn Invitational on beginning Friday. The Longhorn Invitational will feature Texas, USC, Arizona and Georgia.
For more information on the Florida State men's tennis program, check Seminoles.com and follow us on social media at FSUMTennis (IG) and @FSU_MTennis (X).
