Clemson’s ninth-ranked Josipa Bek fell 6-0, 6-2 to Georgia Tech’s eighth-ranked Irina Falconi on Friday at the ITA National Indoor Championship in New Haven, Conn. This marks the second straight season that Tiger sophomore Bek has competed at this prestigious event and the second year she has been eliminated in the second round.

As for the Men’s tennis action, Robert Pietrucha, Gera Boryachinskiy, Derek DiFazio and Kevin Galloway all represented Clemson at the ITF Futures Pro Circuit Event this past weekend in Birmingham, Al.

Bek easily seized her first round matchup win on Thursday against No. 28 Katy Rybakova of Florida State. She defeated Rybakova in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3.

Bek’s elimination in the final 16 from the indoor championship hosted by Yale University closes out the women’s fall season. She also ended her remarkable six-match winning streak, and the loss is only her second in 11 matches.

The Croatia native tried to extend the two-year Clemson trend of having a player compete in the finals, which former Tiger star Ani Mijacika did in both 2007 and 2008.

The Women’s Tennis team will have more than two months to prepare for their return to action in the spring season. Bek will pounce on redemption versus Georgia Tech’s Falconi, and the rest of the Tiger players will align, preparing for ACC battle.

Although the Clemson Men’s Tennis team wrapped up its season a few weeks ago, four players participated in the qualifying draw of the ITF Futures Pro Circuit Event. Ideal for gaining experience by competing against professional tennis players, every Clemson player made it at least to the second round of play.

Extending his match life all the way to the fourth round, Robert Pietrucha made it the furthest out of the Tiger representatives. Pietrucha had a bye the first round, then knocked out Tanner Stump of Mississippi State 6-4, 6-2 in the second round and then shutdown professional Brent Goodbrake 6-1, 6-0 only allowing him one lone game in the third round. In the fourth round, though, Mississippi’s Marcel Thiemann ended Pietrucha’s victorious run by defeating him 6-0, 2-6, 6-0.

Derek DiFazio also received a first round bye, and then in the second round proceeded to trump professional David Jackson 6-0, 6-4. DiFazio’s third round loss (6-3, 0-6, 6-3) was in a heartbreaking three-set battle against Nathan Rosenfeld from Toledo.

Both Kevin Galloway and Gera Boryachinskiy faltered in their second rounds of tournament play. Galloway blanked Vincenzo Ciccone, another professional, in the first round, eliminating him with a perfect 6-0, 6-0 win. Then, like DiFazio, Galloway suffered a loss to Toledo’s Rosenfeld in a competitive three sets, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 in the second round.

Boryachinskiy’s first round bye automatically propelled him into the second round where he faced professional player Robbye Pool. Pool captured the win over Boryachinskiy 6-3, 6-1.

“This tournament gave our players valuable experience going into the last big tournament of the fall,” said Clemson Head Coach Chuck McCuen. “We got a chance to play some of the best college tennis players as well as pros that are trying to make their way on the pro circuit.”

The last big tournament, the Virginia Tech Fall Tournament, for the Clemson Men’s Tennis team takes place this weekend in Blacksburg, Va.