EDWARDSVILLE – The team of Nicholas Shirley of Bloomington, Ind. and Devon Moskowitz of Alpharetta, Ga. defeated Jagger Saylor of Indianapolis and Eli Dieveney of Carmel, Ind. to win the Doubles Shootout, a one-day tournament that decided the wildcard berth in the doubles draw of the $30,000 Edwardsville Futures tennis tournament, presented by The EGHM Foundation, Friday at the Edwardsville Tennis Center.
The 10 teams who entered the tournament were divided into two five-team groups, with the top two in each group advancing to the semifinals, while the other six teams played in a consolation bracket.
In the group stage of the tournament, in Group A, Saylor and Dieveney went 3-0, winning over Jake Cohen and Marco Ziets 7-5, defeating Diego Britt-Alvarez and Emmanuel Wettey 6-3, and clinched the group with a 6-0 win over Jake Brinker and Arhan Meka. Jade Dynamic and Milo Kathrinder of Edwardsville finished fifth in the group, falling to Cohen and Ziets 6-1, losing to Britt-Alvarez and Wettey 6-2, but bouncing back to win over Brinker and Meka 6-3. They did not play Saylor and Dieveney.
In Group B, Shirley and Moskowitz won their group with a three-match sweep, winning over Zach Trimpe of Edwardsville and Josiah Lawrence of Lake Worth, Fla. 6-1, defeating Kirk Schlueter and Paul Lawrence of Edwardsville 6-2, and got the sweep by winning over Brandon Wong of Mercer Island, Wash. and Schaefer Bates of Edwardsville 6-0. Trimpe and Lawrence were fourth in the group, losing to Nils Michel and Jose Moreno 6-2, defeating Schlueter and Stuart 6-2, and losing to Wong and Bates in a walkover. Wong and Bates placed third, losing to Michel and Moreno 6-2, and defeating Schlueter and Stuart 7-5. Schlueter and Stuart were fifth in the group standings, also losing to Michel and Moreno 6-1.
In the consolation bracket, Hattrup teamed with Bates, and received a bye into the semifinals, along with Britt-Alvarez and Wettey. Brinker and Meka won in a walkover over Trimpe and Lawrence, while Schlueter and Stuart withdrew, allowing Kattrinder and Dynamic to go through to the semifinals. In the semis, Britt-Alvarez and Wettey won over Brinker and Meka 7-5, while Hattrup and Bates won over Kattrinder and Dynamic 6-2. In the fifth place match, Hattrup and Bates won over Britt-Alvarez and Wettey in a walkover.
In the championship semifinals, Saylor and Dieveney defeated Michel and Moreno 6-3, and Shirley and Moskowitz eliminated Cohen and Ziets 6-4. Shirley and Moskowitz then won the title and the wildcard berth by defeating Saylor and Dieveney, but the score was not available.
Shirley and Moskowitz advance to the doubles draw in the Futures, which officially begins Sunday with wildcard matches at the Edwardsville Tennis Center. Sunday is also Kids Night, where a free clinic for kids will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., with coaches and the pro players who will be competing in the tournament this coming week.
