HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — The ITF Men’s World Tennis Tour wrapped up an exciting week of action in Hilton Head, South Carolina, for the Dennis Van Der Meer Shipyard Cup. The event brought together international pros, qualifiers, and college players competing for key ATP ranking points.
Auburn Tigers freshman Duje Markovina successfully qualified for the event, earning direct entry into the main singles draw. In the first round, Markovina faced American wild card, Ryan Cozad. Cozad started hot, taking the opening set 6-1, but Markovina fought back, taking the second set to a tiebreak before eventually falling 6-1, 7-6(2).
Third-seeded Dragos Cazacu from the University of Oklahoma put on a show all week to take home the championship title. Cazacu couldn't be stopped, winning every match in straight sets, including a hard-fought semifinal win of 7-5, 7-6(3) against Max Sheldon to punch his ticket to Sunday's final.
On the other side of the draw, Georgia Southern’s qualifier William Mirarchi made an impressive run to reach the final. In a similar fashion to Cazacu, Mirarchi dominated early on, winning his first three main-draw matches in straight sets. That was until he ran into Gavin Goode, the American wildcard. In a much tougher test, Mirarchi still pulled through 7-6(3), 5-7, 6-2 to reach the final against Cazacu.
Cazacu dominated the final, earning a 6-0, 6-2 victory to seal the championship. The 22-year-old improved his already impressive career clay win percentage to 60% with an overall record of 26-17.
Tournaments like these offer a great experience for talented college players like Markovina, letting him face tougher international opponents in preparation for SEC play in the spring.
Auburn will next return to the court for the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships, held Nov. 17-22 at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Georgia.
