March 15, 2018
AUBURN, Ala. - The Auburn men's tennis team fought to the end, but was ultimately defeated by No. 34 Tulane 5-2 on Thursday at the Yarbrough Tennis Center.
As doubles came down to the final court, Auburn was able to clinch the point. Carles Sarrio and Diego Chavarria earned the first set win for the Tigers with a 6-0 sweep of Tulane's Hamish Stewart and Tim Ruetzel on court two.
Tulane answered back with a 6-2 win of their own from Constantin Schmitz and Ewan Moore over Auburn's Ed Nguyen and Matteo DeVincentis on court one, but it was not enough. Auburn's Lorenzo Rodriguez and Tad Maclean clinched the point with a 6-4 win over Tulane's No. 80 tandem of Tyler Schick and Luis Erlenbusch on court three.
"I thought doubles went well," said coach Bobby Reynolds. "Obviously, winning the doubles point is a big momentum starter."
In singles, Tulane took control of the match. Luis Erlenbusch got things started for the Green Wave with a 6-0, 6-2 win over Auburn's Lorenzo Rodriguez on court five. No. 15 Constantin Schmitz followed that with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Auburn's Ed Nguyen on court two. Tyler Schick then put the Green Wave up by two with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Auburn's Tad Maclean on court four.
No. 104 Matte DeVicentis started a comeback attempt for Auburn with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Tulane's Hamish Stewart on court three. Tulane's No. 77 Ewan Moore, however, clinched the match with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Auburn's Carles Sarrio on court two. Tim Ruetzel also defeated Auburn's Brandon Laubser 6-4, 6-3 on court six to conclude the match.
"You see by the look of the first sets and some of the scores that the momentum from doubles didn't really carry over," said Reynolds. "We're obviously frustrated with the result of it and even some of the process through it, so the guys need to get back, think about their games and think about how they need to play. We need to get back to work."
Auburn is now 9-9 on the season and 0-3 in SEC play. The Tigers' next action will be in Tuscaloosa, Ala. as they take on No. 38 Alabama (14-4, 0-3 SEC) on Sunday at 1 p.m.
#34 Tulane 5, Auburn 2
Singles
1. #15 Constantin Schmitz (TLN) def. Edward Nguyen (AUBURN) 6-3, 6-0
2. #77 Ewan Moore (TLN) def. Carles Sarrio (AUBURN) 6-2, 6-3
3. #104 Matteo De Vincentis (AUBURN) def. Hamish Stewart (TLN) 6-3, 6-4
4. Tyler Schick (TLN) def. Tad Maclean (AUBURN) 6-2, 6-3
5. Luis Erlenbusch (TLN) def. Lorenzo Rodriguez (AUBURN) 6-0, 6-2
6. Tim Ruetzel (TLN) def. Brandon Laubser (AUBURN) 6-4, 6-3
Doubles
1. Constantin Schmitz/Ewan Moore (TLN) def. Edward Nguyen/Matteo De Vincentis (AUBURN) 6-2
2. Carles Sarrio/Diego Chavarria (AUBURN) def. Hamish Stewart/Tim Ruetzel (TLN) 6-0
3. Lorenzo Rodriguez/Tad Maclean (AUBURN) def. #80 Tyler Schick/Luis Erlenbusch (TLN) 6-4
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1,3); Singles (5,1,4,3,2,6)