May 24, 2001

ATHENS, Ga. - Fourth-year University of Virginia men's tennis player Brian Vahaly (Atlanta, Ga./The Lovett School) won his first round singles match at the 2001 Men's Tennis Individual Championships in Athens, Ga. on Thursday (May 24). Vahaly defeated Florida's Nathan Overholser, 6-2, 6-1, to advance to the second round of the tournament for the second consecutive year.

With the win, Vahaly broke his old school record for singles victories in a season with 36. He surpassed the old mark of 35, which he set during the 1999-2000 season. Vahaly will play the winner of a Thursday afternoon match between No. 8 seed Bo Hodge from Georgia and Kristofer Stahlberg from Mississippi.

Meanwhile, Vahaly and doubles partner Huntley Montgomery (Chapel Hill, N.C./Chapel Hill) make up the top-seeded doubles team in the tournament. The duo plays Dumitru Caradima and Shuon Madden from Texas A&M on Friday (May 25). The time of the doubles match and Vahaly's singles match has not yet been determined.

SINGLES Brian Vahaly (UVa) def. Nathan Overholser (Florida), 6-2, 6-1.