Men's Tennis . June 9, 2023

Gamecocks Top Carolina Region Rankings

Columbia, S.C. – With their perfect 8-0 record against Carolina Region teams, South Carolina men’s tennis came out on top of the regional team rankings released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association on Friday.

The Gamecocks went 22-7 overall on the season including 14 ranked wins with ten of them in the top-25 and five of them in the top-10.

The team achieved the highest ranking in program history this season, climbing up to No. 2 in the ITA National Team Rankings. They spent the entire 2023 season ranked inside the top-10 and finished with a year-end ranking of No. 8 in the nation, the highest final team ranking since 1989.

During postseason play, the Gamecocks advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships, the furthest a South Carolina team has advanced since 1989.

South Carolina also claimed five spots in the Carolina Region Singles Rankings, the most of any school in the region. Junior Toby Samuel was the highest ranked Gamecock, coming in at No. 2, followed by fellow junior Connor Thomson at No. 3. They were joined in the rankings by No. 12 Casey Hoole, No. 15 James Story, and No. 17 Raphael Lambling.

In the regional doubles rankings, Samuel and Thomson came in as No. 1. In the fall, the duo became the program’s first ITA All-American Championship title holders after winning the doubles competition. Their win propelled them up to be the No. 1 doubles pair in the nation where they spent all but one week of the season. They held onto the No. 1 spot in the final national doubles rankings, giving the program its first final No. 1 national ranking in singles or doubles.

Story and doubles partner Jake Beasley also made their mark in the regional rankings, coming in at No. 9 thanks to their 24-13 overall record.

For all the latest South Carolina men’s tennis information, continue to follow GamecocksOnline.com or the team on social media (@GamecockMTennis).

ITA Carolina Region Rankings

Team

1 – South Carolina

Singles

2 – Toby Samuel

3 – Connor Thomson

12 – Casey Hoole

15 – James Story

17 – Raphael Lambling

Doubles