Men's Tennis . March 12, 2025

Gamecocks Host a Pair of Top 30 SEC Opponents

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The No. 25 South Carolina men’s tennis team hosts two top 30 programs at the Carolina Tennis Center this week to continue its SEC campaign. The Gamecocks kick off action on Thu., March 13 at 5:00 p.m. against No. 29 Arkansas and wrap up play for the week with a noon match on Sat., March 15 against No. 18 Oklahoma.

Gamecock Notables

The Gamecocks carried out a perfect 2-0 road trip last week after facing Vanderbilt and Ole Miss. South Carolina bounced back after dropping the doubles point against the Commodores to pull out a 4-3 win following singles victories from Casey Hoole, Connor Thomson, Sean Daryabeigi and Gabe Avram. The Garnet & Black started off strong in doubles action against Ole Miss with dominant wins from Hoole & Daryabeigi (6-1) and Jelani Sarr & Atakan Karahan (6-1). Hoole, Lucas da Silva and Sarr secured a 4-0 sweep for the Gamecocks with their respective singles wins.
South Carolina is now 10-4 overall with a 4-1 conference record.
Following their performances, the Gamecocks moved back into the top 25 for the first time during conference play, jumping from No. 43 to No. 25 in the latest edition of the ITA team rankings. Thomson (No. 57), Daryabeigi (No. 79) and Sarr (No. 113) represent the team in singles. Thomson and da Silva are No. 26 in doubles.
Thomson and da Silva are on a six-match win streak in doubles with an overall dual season record of 6-1 including a flawless 5-0 conference record. Several Gamecocks boast impressive singles records. Avram holds a 7-1 mark, while Daryabeigi stands at 9-3. Thomson is 6-2 overall and remains unbeaten in SEC play with a 4-0 record.
After going undefeated in singles and picking up one doubles win last week, Hoole was named SEC Player of the Week Wednesday afternoon. He is the second Gamecock to earn the honor this season, following Thomson who was recognized for the same title two weeks ago.

Scouting the Razorbacks

Arkansas is 14-5 this season with a 3-2 record in SEC play.
The Razorbacks are coming off a 4-3 upset win over No. 21 Alabama where they battled back from a 0-2 deficit, marking their second top 25 win of the season.
Lukas Palovic is No. 82 in singles with a 12-4 record, primarily playing in the No. 2 and 3 positions. Jakub Vrba, who is slated to play at line 3 in tomorrow’s match, is ranked No. 124 with a 11-1 record.

Scouting the Sooners

New SEC member Oklahoma holds a 10-4 record this season including a 3-2 conference standing.
The Sooners are coming off a 2-5 loss against Mississippi State after dropping the doubles point for the first time in SEC action. Luis Alvarez and Jordan Hasson picked up the two points with wins from the No. 4 and 5 positions.
Oscar Lacides ranks No. 76 with a 9-4 record from the No. 1 and 2 positions. Lacides and Bruno Nhavene are No. 39 in doubles, holding a 4-2 record at the top of the lineup.

Series History

South Carolina leads Arkansas 25-11 in the all-time series record and will face the Razorbacks Thursday on a four-match win streak.
South Carolina has only faced Oklahoma twice in program history and won both matchups. The last time the Gamecocks faced the Sooners was in 2020.

Follow Along