Sarr’s Clinch Punches Ticket to ITA Indoor Championships

Columbia, S.C. – No. 2 South Carolina men’s tennis booked its ticket to the ITA Indoor National Championships on Sunday with a 4-1 win over LSU. The Gamecocks took the doubles point for the first time this season and rolled through three straight-set singles wins to clinch the match.

In doubles, senior Connor Thomson returned to the lineup and paired with fellow senior Toby Samuel at the No. 1 position. The duo picked up right where they left off after ending last season as the top-ranked pair in the country, claiming a 6-4 win.

The point was clinched at the No. 3 spot in the lineup where Lucas Andrade da Silva and Jelani Sarr earned a late break to take it 7-5.

The Gamecocks carried their positive momentum into singles where they took first sets on four of the six courts. The first Gamecock to close out his second set was junior Casey Hoole who was unstoppable against Chen Dong, beating him 6-1, 6-1.

The Tigers put their point on the board next with Carter Morgan falling on Court 6, 1-6, 2-6.

Freshman Sean Daryabeigi was the next Gamecock to record a win, taking down Welsh Hotard 6-2, 6-2 to increase South Carolina’s lead to 3-1.

The match clinch came at the hands of Sarr who clinched his second consecutive match of the weekend. The Baltimore native flew through his first set 6-2, but his opponent Rudy Ceccon put up a strong fight in the second set with both players holding serve throughout to force a tiebreaker.

In the breaker, things were again close but it was Sarr who came out victorious in a 7-6(5) result. Sarr is now 14-7 on the season and 2-1 from the No. 3 spot in the lineup.

South Carolina’s win punches the team’s ticket to the ITA Men’s Team Indoor Championship that will take place in New York, New York, Feb. 16-19. It’s the team’s third consecutive season qualifying for the event.

The Gamecocks will be in action next on Feb. 2 where they will host NC State in an SEC-ACC matchup at 4:00 p.m. The match will take place at the Carolina Indoor Tennis Center and will be free to the public.

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

(2) South Carolina 4, LSU 1

Doubles (order of finish: 1, 3)

1. Toby Samuel/Connor Thomson (SC) def. Stefan Latinovic/Chen Dong (LSU) 6-4
2. James Story/Casey Hoole (SC) vs. Welsh Hotard/George Stoupe (LSU) 5-5, unfinished
3. Lucas Andrade da Silva/Jelani Sarr (SC) def. Alessio Vasquez/Julien Penzlin (LSU) 7-5

Singles (order of finish: 2, 6, 5, 3)

1. Toby Samuel (SC) vs. Stefan Latinovic (LSU) 6-4, 6-5, unfinished
2. #92 Casey Hoole (SC) def. Chen Dong (LSU) 6-1, 6-1
3. Jelani Sarr (SC) def. Rudy Ceccon (LSU) 6-2, 7-6 (7-5)
4. Lucas Andrade da Silva (SC) vs. George Stoupe (LSU) 6-7 (5-7), 5-3, unfinished
5. Sean Daryabeigi (SC) def. Welsh Hotard (LSU) 6-2, 6-2
6. Julien Penzlin (LSU) def. Carter Morgan (SC) 6-1, 6-2