Auburn defeats Vanderbilt 4-3 in SEC home opener

Auburn defeats Vanderbilt 4-3 in SEC home openerAuburn defeats Vanderbilt 4-3 in SEC home opener
Abby Holbrook/Auburn Tigers

AUBURN, Ala. – Men’s tennis took down Vanderbilt by a 4-3 final score on Friday afternoon at the Yarbrough Tennis Center in Auburn, Alabama. The Tigers struck first by winning a strong doubles point before getting singles victories from Will Nolan, Nicholas Heng and Billy Blaydes to seal the Tigers’ first conference win of the season.

“This was an important one for our season,” Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said after the win. “I'm so proud of the guys because honestly, we're on a short week. We got back late on Monday night and then we had to be ready to go on Friday. The biggest thing I said to them is that we outcompeted them and that's who we are. It’s in our DNA, we outcompete regardless of what level we have. I think from an x's and o's standpoint, it wasn't our best. That’s where I gave them credit because they just found a way. I think we came out in the doubles and got on top of them so early on, it set the tone for the rest of the match.”

Auburn started the match strong in the doubles point. On the top doubles court, Billy Blaydes and Will Nolan earned an early break over Nathan Cox and Michael Ross to take a 3-1 lead and never looked back, winning the next three consecutive games to win 6-1. Leading 4-2 on court three, Nicholas Heng and Thomas Kennedy picked up a crucial break late in the match that led to a 6-2 win that clinched the doubles point for Auburn. The win marked the first dual match victory for Heng and Kennedy as a doubles pair.

After Vanderbilt tied the match with a straight set win on court four, Nolan responded on the top singles court. Nolan took a 5-1 opening set lead before Cox, ranked No. 98 in singles, closed the gap to 5-4. Nolan then won a critical deciding point in a serve game to take the set 6-4 and brought that momentum into the second set that he won 6-3. Nolan is now 11-7 in singles overall this season and 4-4 in dual matches.

The first set between Heng and Callum Markowitz remained tight throughout. Leading the set 6-5, Heng trailed Markowitz in a return game 15-40 but came back to win the game and the set. Heng then cruised through the second set to win 7-5, 6-0 to give Auburn a 3-1 advantage in the match.

Billy Blaydes and Pablo Martinez Gomez also had a tight opening set in the No. 3 singles match. With the set tied at five, Blaydes broke to 15 and claimed the first set 7-5. The Auburn junior then took a 5-4 lead in a tight second set before earning a break in the final game to win 7-5, 6-4 and clinch the team victory for the Tigers.

“I had some chances in the first set to take it 6-3, but responded well to win 7-5,” said Blaydes. “I took that momentum into the second set and managed to sneak a break there at the end to clinch it. I thought it was a really good overall response from the guys after getting kicked in the teeth last weekend. Had a great crowd and a really enjoyable day but looking forward to Georgia on Sunday.”

After the team win was secured, Vanderbilt claimed wins on courts two and five, leading to a 4-3 final score.

With the win, Auburn is now 8-4 overall and 1-2 in conference play. The win also extended the Tigers’ home winning streak to five matches this season.

Auburn will host a doubleheader against Georgia and Tennessee State on Sunday. The first match against Georgia will be played at 1 p.m. CT and the second match against Tennessee State is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. CT. Admission to the Yarbrough Tennis Center is free where fans will be treated to free Kona Ice until 2:30 p.m. CT. Live video and live scoring of both matches will also be available online at AuburnTigers.com.

 

#45 Auburn 4, #32 Vanderbilt 3

Singles Results:

  1. #124 Will Nolan (AUB) def. #98 Nathan Cox 6-4, 6-3
  2. Danil Panarin (VANDY) def. #112 Alex Frusina 7-5, 3-6, [10-4]
  3. Billy Blaydes (AUB) def. Pablo Martinez Gomez 7-5, 6-4
  4. Michael Ross (VANDY) def. Joey Phillips (AUB) 6-2, 6-1
  5. Henry Ruger (VANDY) def. Hamza Nasridinov 6-1, 4-6, 6-2
  6. Nicholas Heng (AUB) def. Callum Markowitz (VANDY) 7-5, 6-0

Doubles Results:

  1. #9 Will Nolan/Billy Blaydes (AUB) def. #87 Nathan Cox/Michael Ross (VANDY) 6-1
  2. Alex Frusina/Joey Phillips (AUB) vs. Danil Panarin/Pablo Martinez Gomez (VANDY) 3-4, unfinished
  3. Thomas Kennedy/Nicholas Heng (AUB) def. Henry Ruger/Guisepee Cerasuolo (VANDY) 6-2

 

Time of match: 2:44; Order of finish: Doubles: 1,2; Singles: 4,1,6,3,2,5; Official: Donna Jerome