Brain wins UTR Sports College Circuit title – University of North Alabama Athletics

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (November 11, 2024) – University of North Alabama men’s tennis junior Lachlan Brain secured the singles men’s bracket championship at this past weekend’s UTR Sports College Circuit Tournament in Tennessee, highlighting a nine-win weekend for the Lions.

Hosted by Belmont, UNA traveled to Nashville bringing seven players to compete in the collegiate open tournament. Inclement weather shortened the tournament, but UNA shined with Brain’s first-place finish, along with solid outings in the Lions’ completed matches.

Brain secured five wins en route to the top prize, defeating three Belmont players before taking on SEC talent Nathan Cox of Vanderbilt. The junior stood strong in the final match, defeating the Commodore in a straight-set 7-5, 6-3 victory.

His path to the final started with a round-one win over Finn Pollard, 6-4, 6-0, before defeating Charlie Robin of Belmont, 6-3, 6-4. Brain continued with a 6-3, 6-4 quarterfinals win over Belmont’s Morgan Woodson, securing his spot in the final and eventual title claim with a 6-4, 7-5 triumph against the Bruin’s Esunge Ndumbe.

North Alabama received four additional wins from senior Nazar Fedoryshyn, freshman Satoru Nakajima and sophomores Birtan Duran and Alberto Altur. Each secured a win in opening bouts of the main draw before falling in respective ensuing matches. Inclement weather canceled play in the back draw bracket, effectively ending the weekend early for the Lions.

Nakajima opened with a first-round bye before defeating Belmont’s Eli Mizerski, 7(7)-6(4), 6-4, in the second round. Duran followed his first-round bye with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Axel Le Ho of Wallace State Community College. Fedoryshyn defeated Kostiantyn Zviahintsev of Brescia, 6-1, 6-1, following his bye in the first round, and Altur secured a 6-2, 6-1 win over Stefan Cvetkovic of Atlantic Sun Conference foe Lipscomb in his opening match.

Sophomores Izan Orgiles and Whitman Davis also competed on the weekend, but both failed to secure any wins due to the cancelation of the back draw. Orgiles started his campaign with a bye, following with a 6-4, 6-1 defeat to Kristian Thomas of Middle Tennessee. Davis fell to Cumberland’s Gabriel Meireles Freitas De Godoy in a competitive 7(7)-6(2), 6-2 matchup to round out UNA’s weekend.

Serving as the final campaign of the Fall 2024 Season, North Alabama Men’s Tennis looks ahead to the championship season in 2025. The Lions captured 92 wins in the autumn campaign and will look to use the success to fuel the incoming Spring season filled with high expectations.

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