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.
