FRESNO, Calif. – San Diego State juniors Arnaud Restifo (Nice, France) and Rafael Gonzalez Almazan (Madrid, Spain) posted two victories apiece in singles competition on Saturday to lead the Aztec men's tennis team on the second day of the Bulldog Classic at Spalding G. Wathen Tennis Center.
In Flight A, Restifo overcame a one-set deficit in both of his matches, rallying past San Francisco's Nitzan Ricklis in the quarterfinals, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, before pulling away from Patrik Pech of host Fresno State in the semifinals, 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-0.
With his results, Restifo will battle Azusa Pacific's Jakob Schnaitter in the championship final on Sunday morning. Earlier, Schnaitter eliminated SDSU sophomore Jan Kirchhoff (Berlin, Germany) from the main draw with a 6-4, 6-3 triumph in the quarterfinals before posting a 6-3, 6-2 conquest of Fresno State's Cem Erturk in the semis.
In Flight B, Gonzalez Almazan also experienced early adversity in his quarterfinal encounter with Nevada's Delmas N'tcha, but ultimately prevailed in three sets, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4. The native Spaniard kept the momentum rolling in the semifinals against Sonoma State's Max Nudell, dispatching his Seawolf opponent, 6-2, 6-4, to set up a Sunday showdown with San Francisco's Phuc Huynh in the title match.
In the Aztecs' remaining singles engagemtn, Nicholas Mitchell (Ojai, Calif.) fell short in the Flight C consolation semifinals to another USF foe David Woodland, dropping a 6-2, 6-4 decision.
However, Mitchell and Kirchhoff were not shut out on Saturday after emerging triumphant in their Flight B doubles semifinal match, where they edged the USF tandem of Ricklis and Ryan Marker in a tiebreaker, 8-7(4). With their victory, the Aztec duo will face Azusa Pacific's Leyton Boren and Ryan Nuno for the crown on Sunday.
Similarly, Restifo and Gonzalez Almazan survived a tiebreaker of their own the consolation semifinals of Flight A, where they defeated the Fresno State pairing of Erturk and Pech, 8-7(3). The Aztec teammates will now square off against the Nevada combo of Daniel Dudockin and Mathey Radionov in the bracket final on Sunday as well.
Bulldog Classic
Nov. 3, 2018
Spalding G. Wathen Tennis Center
Fresno, Calif.
SDSU Results Only
Singles – Flight A
Quarterfinals
Arnaud Restifo (SDSU) def. Nitzan Ricklis (USF), 4-6, 6-2, 6-1
Jakob Schnaitter (APU) def. Jan Kirchhoff (SDSU), 6-4, 6-3
Semifinals
Arnaud Restifo (SDSU) def. Patrik Pech (FS), 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-0
Singles – Flight B
Quarterfinals
Rafael Gonzalez Almazan (SDSU) def. Delmas N'tcha (NEV), 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
Semifinals
Rafael Gonzalez Almazan (SDSU) def. Max Nudell (SSU), 6-2, 6-4
Singles – Flight C
Consolation Semifinals
David Woodland (USF) def. Nicholas Mitchell (SDSU), 6-2, 6-4
Doubles – Flight A
Consolation Semifinals
Rafael Gonzalez Almazan/Arnaud Restifo (SDSU) def. Cem Erturk/Patrik Pech (FS), 8-7(3)
Doubles – Flight B
Semifinals
Jan Kirchhoff/Nicholas Mitchell (SDSU) def. Ryan Marker/Nitzan Ricklis (USF), 8-7(4)
Strong Showing for Men's Tennis on Day Two in Fresno
