NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Belmont University men's tennis team fell short in its 2021 opening match against Vanderbilt, with the Commodores defeating the Bruins 6-1 on Sunday at the Currey Tennis Center.
The match was highlighted by Arthur Toledo's singles victory over Vanderbilt's Max Freeman. The Belmont junior won the first set 6-1 while Freeman bounced back to win 6-2 in set two, with Toledo taking the match with a 7-5 victory in set three. Toledo's win marks the second consecutive season where a Belmont men's tennis player claimed a victory over an opponent from a Power 5 school.
"That was probably the closest we ever played Vanderbilt," Director of Tennis Mauricio Antun said. "We usually play them close on a couple spots, but today everyone showed up ready to play and we were close almost in every position. I was so proud of our competitiveness, relentlessness and attitude throughout the whole match. As I said before, this is a great group of guys that want to do something special this year. They work extremely hard and this match gives us a lot of hope that good things are ahead of us. For Arthur to win that match after a long third set, it just shows how hard we competed."
Vanderbilt started the match by sweeping the doubles portion to earn the first point. With Vanderbilt claiming three singles matches in two sets, Belmont's Taisei Miyamoto battled his way back in the third set. Trailing early 4-1 in set three, the Chiba, Japan native responded with three consecutive game wins to tie the score 4-4. Vanderbilt's Sisam, however, answered by winning the next two games to claim the win.
Freshman Diego Castro bounced back with a 6-4 victory in set two to force a third set in his Belmont debut. Castro fell just short 6-4 in the third set to Vanderbilt's Jeremie Casabon.
Belmont continues its road trip on Friday to Louisville, Ky., facing Bellarmine at 3 p.m.
Vanderbilt 6, Belmont 1
Singles competition
1. Harwell (VAN) def. Ilic (BEL) 6-4, 6-3
2. Toledo (BEL) def. Freeman (VAN) 6-1, 2-6, 7-5
3. Ferreira (VAN) def. Luis (BEL) 6-3, 6-1
4. Sisam (VAN) def. Miyamoto (BEL) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
5. Casabon (VAN) def. Castro (BEL) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
6. Klopper (VAN) def. Wallin (BEL) 6-4, 6-1
Doubles competition
1. Harwell/Freeman (VAN) def. Ilic/Miyamoto (BEL) 6-4
2. Ferreira/Sisam (VAN) def. Castro/Toledo (BEL) 6-4
3. Casbon/Sraberg (VAN) def. Wallin/Kelly (BEL) 6-2
