Bernstein punches ticket to round 16

With its season hanging on the outcome of a single match, Georgia had the right player on the tennis court.

As has happened so many times this season, Drake Bernstein was the player who clinched the Bulldogs' victory on Sunday, beating Florida State's Jordan Kelly-Houston to secure a come-from-behind Georgia win and send his team to the round of 16 in the NCAA tournament.

"I guess it's just luck," Bernstein said of his record in clinching matches, which improved to 6-0 on Sunday. "I know that anybody else on the team could have done it, and they did a better job than me today of winning easier matches. It's a position I love to be in and I just can't say how much fun it is."

Bernstein was responsible for much of the dramatics, helping his team rally from a 3-1 deficit and earning a third shot at No. 6 Florida - which will come at 6 p.m. Friday at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. The Winder native nearly won in straight sets, but double faulted away a match point and eventually slipped into a third set.

But he recovered to beat the FSU freshman in the third set, winning 7-6 (5), 6-7 (7), 6-3 at No. 4 singles. That came shortly after teammate Javier Garrapiz rallied from a first-set deficit to win 4-6, 7-6 (2), 6-3 over Jean-Yves Aubone at the No. 1 court to tie the match at 3-all.

"I was trying to be in my match and just keep playing. The guy I was playing is pretty good. He's one of the best guys in the nation," Garrapiz said of Aubone, who is ranked 31st in the nation in singles.

"So I was just try