FORT SMITH, Arkansas – After falling behind in doubles, the Ouachita men's tennis team came back to win four straight singles matchups and eventually earn a 5-2 victory over Newman on Tuesday in a neutral-site match played in Fort Smith.
The victory moves Ouachita to 7-2 overall with its fourth straight win. It is also the first conference win of the season with Newman joining the MIAA/GAC South Division this year.
The Tigers lost second and third position doubles to start the match while seventh-ranked
Phil Exner and
Alex Blanchar took care of business at No. 1 with a clean 6-0 sweep.
In singles, Exner,
Ramon Strassmann,
Elias Lagger, and
Moritz Buss all won in straight sets to seal the team win.
Fernando Docters later earned Ouachita's final point with a hard-fought win in third position.
The 11th-ranked Tigers are back in Arkadelphia on Wednesday for a match against Nebraska-Kearney starting at 2 p.m.
NO. 11 OUACHITA 4, NEWMAN 1
DOUBLES
- No. 7 Exner/Blanchar (OUA) def. Ali Mounir/Nicolo Lippolis (NEW) 6-0
- Isfandiyor Makhmudov/Kurt Bruckner (NEW) def. No. 6 Fernando Docters/Strassmann (OUA) 7-6
- Luca Penteado/Andrea Bramati (NEW) def. Lagger/Aaron Osmond (OUA) 7-6 (7-3)
SINGLES
- Mounir (NEW) def. No. 31 Blanchar (OUA) 0-6, 6-4, 6-3
- No. 19 Exner (OUA) def. No. 41 Bruckner (NEW) 6-1, 6-3
- No. 32 Docters (OUA) def. Mkhmudov (NEW) 7-5, 7-6 (7-5)
- Strassmann (OUA) def. Penteado (NEW) 7-6, 6-1
- Lagger (OUA) def. Bramati (NEW) 6-4, 6-3
- Buss (OUA) def. Lippolis (NEW) 7-5, 6-0
