Vilms, Ward Advance To Second Round Of Qualifying Round At ITA All-American Championships

AUSTIN -- The BYU's doubles team of Gert Vilms and Damien Ward advanced to the Second Round of the qualifying tournament Tuesday at the men's tennis ITA All-American Championships held at the University of Texas, in Austin, Texas.

The team advanced after defeating the team of Kyle Kliegerman and Ahn Liu from Princeton University, 6-2, 6-2. They will play Wednesday at 12 p.m. MST, against Jeremy Bayon and Matt Soto from Mississippi State University. Bayon and Soto advanced after defeating Eduardo Gordilho and Michal Jordan from Southwest Louisiana, 6-4, 4-6, 7-6.

This is the second national tournament Vilms and Ward have played in this season. They advanced to the main draw of the National Clay Court Championships last month in Baltimore, but lost in the first round to the team of Steve Huss/Tiago Ruffoni of Auburn, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4.

The ITA All-American Championships will run through Monday.