GREENWOOD – The No. 4-ranked and second-seeded Lander men's tennis team opened up the NCAA Southeast Regional with a 5-2 victory over Georgia College on Monday at the Joe Cabri Tennis Center.

With the victory, the Bearcats (21-3) earned their second win of the year over Georgia College (11-11) and advance to the Southeast Regional championship where they will take on Flagler (19-7) on Tuesday, May 1 at 2:30 p.m. Flagler defeated Queens (13-5) in the day's second match.

The winner of the final will advance to Surprise, Ariz., where 16 teams will compete for the national championship May 9-12. 

"We did enough to get the job done," said head coach Brett Simpson. "Georgia College is a tough team so we expected a tough match and we got one. We played well in certain positions and took some of the pressure off us."

The Bearacts picked up two doubles points after juniors Eirik Groner and Ozan Cildir picked up an 8-3 victory at No. 2. Senior Philippe Courteau and freshman Gabriel Couto earned the second point with an 8-1 win at No. 3. 

In singles, Georgia College tied the match with a win via retirement at No. 2 before Courteau breezed through a 6-2, 6- victory over Cole Heller at No. 6 to give Lander a lead it would not relinquish. Cildir followed with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Enzo Kohn at No. 3. Freshman Tommaso Rossin clinched the victory and ended the match with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Gabriel Caron. 

Admission is the Southeast Regional championship match is free. Lander is playing in its sixth consecutive Southeast Regional final and is looking to advance to the NCAA Round of 16 for the fourth time in six seasons.