CLEMSON, S.C. – Auburn men’s tennis earned an impressive road victory Friday evening, defeating No. 16 Clemson 5-2 at the Duckworth Family Tennis Facility. The Tigers claimed a tight doubles point, two straight-set singles wins and a pair of three-set victories.
“This was a great team win,” Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said. “To go on the road and play a highly ranked Clemson team that’s headed to ITA Indoors next week and come away with a win is a testament to our guys. They came in and fought, and they put themselves in a great position by winning the doubles point and six first sets. Momentum shifted a little and Clemson started to believe, but our guys held on.
“It’s a credit to the hard work they’ve put in. This team is talented, and I’m excited to have some time off before SEC play begins. We’ll go home, rest and get back to training outdoors.”
Billy and Freddy Blaydes set the tone in doubles, earning a quick 6-1 victory over Viktor Markov and Henrik Bladelius. Clemson responded with a tiebreaker win at the No. 3 position, setting up a winner-take-all match on court two.
The teams traded holds at the No. 2 doubles position before the match was decided in a tiebreaker. Auburn’s Joey Phillips and Nicholas Heng jumped out to an early lead, winning the first three points, before closing out the tiebreaker 7-4 to secure the doubles point.
Auburn carried the momentum into singles, winning the opening set on all six courts.
At the No. 3 singles position, Heng went back and forth with Matisse Farzam in the opening set before pulling away late for a 6-4 win. With the second set tied at four, Heng earned a crucial break and closed out the straight-set victory, 6-4, 6-4. The win marked Heng’s ninth of the season and fifth in dual matches.
At No. 2 singles, Billy Blaydes cruised through the opening set against Noa Vukadin, winning 6-1. After erasing an early 3-1 deficit in the second set, Blaydes prevailed in the tiebreaker, winning five of the final six points to secure a 6-1, 7-6 (4) victory and give Auburn a 3-0 lead.
Clemson answered with a three-set win at the No. 1 position to trim the margin to 3-1.
Freddy Blaydes then delivered the clincher at No. 4 singles. After winning the first set 6-4, the Auburn sophomore dropped the second 6-3 before catching fire in the decisive third set. Blaydes won the first five games and closed out the match 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 to clinch the team victory.
After the match was decided, Auburn freshman Alan Bojarski earned a hard-fought 7-6 (2), 5-7, 7-6 (3) win over Manuel Plunger at the No. 5 position.
The victory improves Auburn’s record to 7-1 and extends its all-time series lead over Clemson to 6-4. Up next, Auburn opens conference play at home Feb. 21 against Florida at the Yarbrough Tennis Center. The match is scheduled for noon CT.
Auburn 5, #16 Clemson 2
Singles Results:
- Viktor Markov (CU) def. Hamza Nasridinov (AUB) 4-6, 6-4, 6-2
- Billy Blaydes (AUB) def. Noa Vukadin (CU) 6-1, 7-6 (7-4)
- Nicholas Heng (AUB) def. Matisse Farzam (CU) 6-4, 6-4
- Freddy Blaydes (AUB) def. Edoardo C Ligniere (CU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
- Alan Bojarski (AUB) def. Manuel Plunger (CU) 7-6 (7-2), 5-7, 7-6 (7-3)
- Henrik Bladelius (CU) def. Manel Lazaro (AUB) 3-6, 7-6 (1-7), 6-4
Doubles Results:
- Billy Blaydes/Freddy Blaydes (AUB) def. Viktor Markov/Henrik Bladelius (CU) 6-1
- Nicholas Heng/Joey Phillips (AUB) def. Edoardo C Ligniere/Noa Vukadin (CU) 7-6 (7-4)
- Matisse Farzam/Manuel Plunger (CU) def. Alan Bojarski/Jake Kennedy (AUB) 7-6 (7-5)
Time of match: 3:53 Order of finish: Doubles: 1,3,2; Singles: 3,2,1,4,6,5