Rice University
SMU
SMU Rallies to Down Owls
4/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
David Warren picked up a pair of wins, but the Rice men's tennis team could not maintain its early momentum and saw 44th ranked SMU close out the 2015 regular season schedule with a 4-2 win at the SMU Tennis Complex on Sunday.
Warren improved to 15-6 in spring singles with a straight set win at No. 5 singles after teaming with Max Andrews to grind out a tiebreak win at No. 1 doubles to give the Owls the initial point of the match.
Jamie Malik and Zach Yablon struck first with a 6-1 win at the No. 2 position but the Mustangs struck back with a win at No. 3 setting the stage for a hard-fought resolution of the doubles point on court one. Warren and Andrews, who made their first appearance in the national rankings at No. 87 earlier this week, downed SMU's 86th ranked pairing of Markus Kerner and Arturs Kazijevs 7-4 in the tiebreak to give the Owls a 1-0 lead.
The teams split the six first sets in singles, but SMU was able to capitalize on its three first set wins by closing each one out in straight sets. The Mustangs then grabbed the clincher by winning in three sets at No. 1 singles.
The Rice men's team will travel to Norfolk, Virginia this week to complete in the Conference USA Men's Tennis Championship at the Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center on the campus of Old Dominion University. Seedings for the championship will be announced on Monday. For updates on the seeds and the championship schedule, check the Championship Central web page: http://www.conferenceusa.com/championships/m-tennis-championship-15.html
Tennis Match Results
Rice vs SMU
4/12/2015 at Dallas, Texas
(SMU Tennis Complex)
#44 SMU 4, #55 Rice 2
Singles competition
1. Markus Kerner (SMU) def. Srikar Alla (RICE) 2-6, 6-2, 7-5
2. Arturs Kazijevs (SMU) def. Max Andrews (RICE) 6-0, 6-2
3. Samm Butler (SMU) def. Jamie Malik (RICE) 6-3, 6-3
4. Nate Lammons (SMU) def. Adam Gustafsson (RICE) 6-4, 6-4
5. David Warren (RICE) def. Tony Russell (SMU) 7-6, 6-4
6. Charles Nettlefold (SMU) vs. Gustavo Gonzalez (RICE) 2-6, 6-4, 4-3, unfinished
Doubles competition
1. #87 Max Andrews/David Warren (RICE) def. #86 Markus Kerner/Arturs Kazijevs (SMU) 7-6 (7-4)
2. Jamie Malik/Zach Yablon (RICE) def. Arkadijs Slobodkins/Nate Lammons (SMU) 6-1
3. Tony Russell/Samm Butler (SMU) def. Adam Gustafsson/Gustavo Gonzalez (RICE) 7-5
Match Notes:
Rice 11-13; National ranking #55
SMU 18-8; National ranking #44
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (2,3,4,5,1)
T-3:09 A-140
Players Mentioned
