The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men's tennis team dropped a heartbreaker at Mercer 4-3 today. The Mocs won the doubles point, but lost the deciding singles match in a three-set tiebreaker.
Today was the first time the Mocs won the doubles point against a Division I opponent this spring. Chattanooga opened with senior Luke Saunders and junior Lucas Plesky shutting out Mercer's top team of Sam Philp and Arnav Mohanty 6-0 at No. 1. It was the third win in a row for UTC's top duo.
Mercer got on the board with a 6-2 win at No.
2, but Chattanooga won the point with a 6-3 victory at No. 3. Senior Nick Wingord and sophomore Michael Birnbaum got their first win against Fernando Guardi and Nicolas Gullion.
"It was a nail-biter, but we started off strong," stated head coach Carlos Garcia. "We played great in the doubles and those were impressive wins at No. 1 and No. 3."
Mercer grabbed the momentum quickly in singles, winning the first set in five of six matches. The Bears took a 2-1 lead with straight-sets wins at No. 5 and No. 6.
After dropping his first set 6-0, Pleasky stormed back for a three set win at No. 1. That tied the match at 2-2. Mercer went back on top 3-2 after getting a point at No. 4. Saunders also fought back after losing the first for a three-set win at No. 2.
That left senior Nick Wingord on the court in a tough battle against Arnav Mohanty at No. 3. Wingord won the first set 7-6 after a 7-4 tiebreaker. He dropped the second and was forced into another tiebreaker in the third. That frame went to extra points, but Mohany took the win 8-6.
"I was proud of the boys today," stated Garcia. "This was a tough road match and they gave it everything they had."
"Lucas had a great win at No. 1, as did Luke at no. 2. No. 3 came down to a few points here and there, but Nick left it all on the court. It was a good performance across the board, we just came up short."
The loss drops the Mocs to 5-11 overall and 0-3 in SoCon play. The Bears remain undefeated in league action at 3-0 while improving to 8-12 overall.
The Mocs travel to The Citadel tomorrow. Match time is set for 1:00 p.m. in Charleston, S.C.
Mercer 4, Chattanooga 3
Apr 02, 2016 at Macon, Ga. (LeRoy Peddy Tennis Center)
Doubles competition
1. Lucas Plesky/Luke Saunders (UTC) def. Sam Philp/Arnav Mohanty (MER) 6-0
2. Ruben Vanoppen/Arsav Mohanty (MER) def. John Peacey/Derrick Brown (UTC) 6-2
3. Michael Birnbaum/Nick Wingord (UTC) def. Fernando Guardia/Nicolas Guillon (MER) 6-3
Singles competition
1. Lucas Plesky (UTC) def. Sam Philp (MER) 0-6, 6-3, 6-3
2. Luke Saunders (UTC) def. Nicolas Guillon (MER) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
3. Arnav Mohanty (MER) def. Nick Wingord (UTC) 7-6 (6-4), 3-6, 7-6 (8-6)
4. Anderson Scarpa (MER) def. John Peacey (UTC) 5-7, 6-2, 6-3
5. Arsav Mohanty (MER) def. Pablo Llebeili (UTC) 6-3, 7-5
6. Fernando Guardia (MER) def. Derrick Brown (UTC) 6-0, 6-1