Both Samford tennis squads were in action over the weekend, with the men’s team falling to the Bulls of South Florida and the women earning a victory over Charleston Southern.
The men’s team battled USF on Saturday, March 13 in Tampa, Florida. The Bulldogs fell to the Bulls by a final score of 5-2 at the USF Varsity Tennis Courts.
With the defeat, the Bulldogs moved to 6-6 on the year, while South Florida improved to 9-2 with the victory.
Samford’s Roussow Norval and Mohammed Ali Bellalouna took down Alvin Tudorica and Antonio Muniz 6-1 to open the No. 3 doubles match. The Bulldogs also had a strong showing at the No. 1 doubles as Victor Chaw and Jim Hendrix earned a victory over nationally ranked USF doubles pair Jakub Wojcik and Rithvik Bollipalli. Chaw and Hendrix battled to a 6-6 tie, sending the contest into a tie break, where the Bulldogs would eventually take home a doubles victory.
At the No. 5 singles, Tomas Santantonio improved his overall record to 8-2 on the season, winning a three-set match over South Florida’s Alvin Tudorica with a final score of 6-4, 4-6, 10-7. Santantonio is currently on a 6-match winning streak for Samford.
The Bulldogs will open SoCon play on Wednesday, March 17 at 2 p.m. CST as Samford hosts The Citadel.
On the women’s side, the squad earned a 4-2 victory over Charleston Southern at the Gary Clark Banks Sr. Tennis Center.
With the victory, the Bulldogs improved its overall record to 8-7 on the year.
In doubles, Samford opened the day with wins at all three courts. Rouxanne Janse Van Rensburg and Alexis Lopez earned their seventh win as a duo after defeating opponents Madalina Man and Khyanna Singh 6-1 at the No. 1 spot.
On court two, Natalia De Ugarte and Cindy Oest claimed a 6-2 victory over Zoe Cauthen and Tiffany Pyritz, while Samantha Nanere and Olivia Jablonski achieved their second win of the season at the No. 3 spot with a 6-4 victory over Luiza Fullana and Michelle Schmitz.
Charleston Southern grabbed its first two wins in singles action at courts three and four to take a 2-1 lead, but Samford’s Samantha Nanere recorded a 6-1, 6-4 victory at the No. 6 spot over Tyler Kirk to tie the match at 2-2.
Rouxanne Janse Van Rensburg followed up this performance at the No. 1 spot with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Madalina Man to put Samford back in the lead. On court five, Samford’s Olivia Jablonski captured a win for the Bulldogs with a 7-5, 7-5 victory over Zoe Cauthen, leaving Natalia De Ugarte’s match unfinished at the No. 2 spot.
The Bulldogs will be back in action as they head to Greensboro, North Carolina for their first SoCon match against UNCG on Friday, March 19 at 12 p.m. CST.
Gunnar Sadowey is the sports editor for the Crimson. He is a senior from Elkhart, IN. Gunnar is currently a journalism and mass communications major with a print concentration and a German minor.
