NASHVILLE, Tenn. - - In a valiant effort, the Belmont men's tennis team lost 6-1 to the SEC's Vanderbilt Commodores tonight at the Currey Tennis Center.
The doubles portion saw Belmont face a Vanderbilt squad that was 10-0 in dual doubles play. At the same moment the Commodores clinched doubles play to take a 1-0 lead, senior Arthur Toledo and junior Jack Randall managed to break Vanderbilt's perfect spell by beating Max Freeman and George Harwell on court two: 6-4.
In singles, the lone win belonged to Brazilian sophomore Ian Cruz. Cruz, now 3-2 in singles play this spring, took hold early and beat Freeman on court four: 6-4, 6-2. It reflected a common thread for the match as all but one singles match ended after two sets. The one that didn't was a testament to sophomore Tomas Luis.
On court two, Luis was paired up against Vandy's biggest weapon, Joubert Klopper. Klopper, who was named the SEC Player of the Week two days ago, took set one over Luis. With his back against the wall, Luis fought back. In a spirited second round, Luis and Klopper were tied at six apiece and went to the tiebreaker. With gusto, Luis tied the match. Alas, Klopper got back on track and stopped Luis's comeback attempt.
After fighting hard, Belmont is 3-3 this spring. Originally, they were scheduled to go to Birmingham, Alabama on Sunday to play Samford. However, the match was cancelled for the time being earlier tonight. Belmont will try to reschedule the match later on. After tonight, the Bruins will have eight days to recoup before welcoming Georgia Southern to Nashville next Saturday at three p.m.
Follow Belmont Men's Tennis on social media - @BelmontTennis on Twitter and @belmontmenstennis on Instagram - for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
DOUBLES
S. Troost/M. Ross def. D. Castro/T. Luis (BU) - 6-4
A. Toledo/J. Randall (BU) def. M. Freeman/G. Harwell - 6-4
M. Ferreira/J. Klopper def. T. Miyamoto/A. Wallin (BU) - 6-1
SINGLES
George Harwell def. Arthur Toledo (BU) - 6-4, 6-1
Joubert Klopper def. Tomas Luis (BU) - 6-2, 6-7, 6-1
Marcus Ferreira def. Jack Randall (BU) - 6-3, 6-4
Ian Cruz (BU) def. Max Freeman - 6-4, 6-2
Jeremie Casabon def. Taisei Miyamoto (BU) - 7-5, 7-5
Macsen Sisam def. Alfred Wallin (BU) - 7-6 (3), 6-2
