South Carolina Sweeps NC State 4-0
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 14 South Carolina men’s tennis swept No. 16 NC State 4-0 on Friday afternoon at the Carolina Tennis Center. After taking the doubles point, the Gamecocks continued to dominate in singles, with No. 118 Connor Thomson clinching the match.
In doubles, Jake Beasley and Toby Samuel got things started in the No. 2 spot. The duo efficiently won 6-1 when Beasley executed an overhead that NC State’s Robin Catry and Collin Shick could not return. In the No. 3 spot, No. 59 Raphael Lambling and Phillip Jordan secured the doubles point for the Gamecocks in a 6-4 decision.
In singles, the Gamecocks got off to a quick start, winning four of the six first sets. On Court 1, No. 32 Daniel Rodrigues took his first set 6-3 and kept the momentum going. He went up 5-0 in the second set before the Wolfpack’s Rafa Izquierdo Luque came back to win one game. Rodrigues did not flinch, winning the second set 6-1 after Luque’s lob off a Rodrigues backhand sailed out of bounds.
With the Gamecocks up 2-0, Samuel quickly brought in the next point on Court 4. He swept NC State’s Yannai Barkai in the first set, but the second set was hotly contested. The set went to a tiebreak, in which Samuel created an early 4-0 lead before winning 7-4 with a volley at the net that Barkai could not answer.
In the No. 2 spot, No. 118 Connor Thomson battled hard against NC State’s No. 95 Tadas Babelis. The first set went to a tiebreak, where Thomson came out on top with an efficient 7-1 win. Thomson brought that energy into his second set, where he only allowed three games the whole set. He upset Babelis and clinched the match 6-3 with an ace serve down the middle, securing the 4-0 sweep for South Carolina.
The Gamecocks continue their weekend at home when they take on No. 1 North Carolina on Sun., Mar. 14, at 1 p.m. ET.
For all the latest South Carolina men’s tennis information, continue to follow GamecocksOnline.com or the team on social media (@GamecockMTennis).
(14) South Carolina def. (16) NC State 4-0
Doubles (Order of Finish: 2, 3*)
1. (44) Daniel Rodrigues / Connor Thomson (SC) vs. (9) Tadas Babelis / Yannai Barkai (NCSU) 5-6 DNF
2. Toby Samuel / Jake Beasley (SC) def. Robin Catry / Collin Shick (NCSU) 6-1
3. (59) Raphael Lambling / Phillip Jordan (SC) vs. Robert Turzak / Rafa Izquierdo Luque (NCSU) 6-4
Singles (Order of Finish: 1, 4, 2*)
1. (32) Daniel Rodrigues (SC) def. Rafa Izquierdo Luque (NCSU) 6-3, 6-1
2. (118) Connor Thomson (SC) def. (95) Tadas Babelis (NCSU) 7-6 (1), 6-3
3. (81) Raphael Lambling (SC) vs. Robin Catry (NCSU) 2-6, 6-4 DNF
4. Toby Samuel (SC) def. Yannai Barkai (NCSU) 6-0, 7-6 (4)
5. Jake Beasley (SC) vs. Robert Turzak (NCSU) 7-5, 4-3 DNF
6. Phillip Jordan (SC) vs. Martins Rocens (NCSU) 6-7 (6), 1-3 DNF
