Arkansas Suffers 6-1 Loss to No. 4 South Carolina
COLUMBIA, S.C. – The No. 55 Arkansas men’s tennis team concluded their three-match road stretch in Columbia, S.C. The Gamecocks (16-3, 5-2) gained the early advantage by winning the doubles point en route to a 6-1 victory over the Razorbacks (12-8, 0-7) Sunday afternoon.
South Carolina grabbed the first match in doubles play, as No. 1 Samuel/Thomson defeated juniors Adrien Burdet and Melvin Manuel, 6-3. Much like Friday night, the Hogs were in close battles on the other two courts. In the end, juniors Stefanos Savva and Alan Sau Franco dropped a tiebreak on court two to No. 43 Beasley/Story, 7-6 (5).
The Gamecocks carried their momentum into singles play and clinched the match with three straight-set wins on courts one, two, and four. Freshman Gerard Planelles Ripoll accounted for the only point of the match for Arkansas in the No. 6 spot, rallying from a first-set tiebreak loss to beat Lucas Da Silva 6-7 (4), 6-4, 10-6. Planelles Ripoll improves to 13-4 this dual season.
On court five, Sau Franco dropped a tight finish to Jake Beasley, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 10-3. In the No. 3 spot, Burdet fought back to force a third-set tiebreak against No. 111 Raphael Lambling. However, Lambling closed out the match by defeating Burdet 11-9.
The Razorbacks return home this upcoming weekend to host No. 51 LSU on Friday, March 31 and No. 7 Georgia on Sunday, April 2 at Billingsley Tennis Center.
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