BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University men's tennis alumni Philip Kloc and Bobby Lake shined at the United States Tennis Association (USTA) National Clay Court Championships held in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. at the Jimmy Evert Tennis Center.
Coming into the tournament unranked and unseeded, Kloc/Lake put forth a stellar 4-0 performance including wins over three of the top four seeds en route to claiming the national title. Kloc and Lake dealt Christopher Rosensteel and Drew Van Oderlain a three-set defeat in what was an exciting tournament finale. After falling in the first set, the Black and Gold tandem captured the second frame, 6-3, and then needed a tiebreaking 7-6 (7-4) victory to earn the trophy and the gold ball.
The first three wins for Kloc and Lake went straight sets, as the pairing defeated Adam Duan/ Daniel Thornton, 6-2, 6-0 in the Round of 16 before downing second-seeded Abhishek Bastola/ Charley Force 6-2, 6-3. The Quarterfinal triumph advanced the duo to the Semifinals, where they handed No. 3 seed Alexander Brenner/ Jeremy Sonkin a 6-4, 6-2 setback.
Also, Lake competed in the mixed doubles bracket with Bobbi Oshiro (Boise State). They didn't disappoint, claiming the national title with a 3-0 mark. Lake/Oshiro upended Shene Disbergen and Thornton in the quarterfinal round before downing the top-seeded pairing of Ashley/Martinez in a come-from-behind victory. Following a 6-1 defeat in the opening frame, the pair won the next two sets including a tight-knight 7-6 (8-6) triumph to advance to the final round. From that point, Lake and Oshiro dominated for a 7-5, 6-0 win for the championship over Ashley/Ivanova.
Kloc, a member of the program from 2009-12, produced a solid career where he finished 64-23 overall (27-12 SoCon) in singles and 63-26 (26-14 SoCon) in doubles. The four-year letterwinner earned a SoCon All-Doubles nod in his senior campaign. In four seasons with Kloc on campus, the Mountaineers had four straight winning seasons boasting a 57-33-1 record.
Lake played two seasons in 2008-09 after transferring from UNCG. The son of former head coach, Bob Lake, Bobby won five matches in his first season in singles and 11 in doubles action. His senior campaign was his best as he finished 13-11 in singles and earned the program's first-ever individual national ranking at No. 125 while receiving a First-Team All-SoCon singles selection.
Both Kloc and Lake played pivotal roles in the Mountaineers earning their first and only national ranking at 67th in the country in 2009. App finished 15-10 and picked up a SoCon Tournament victory over The Citadel.
