Men's Tennis . February 21, 2026

Gamecocks Open SEC Play with 4-3 Win over No. 18 Oklahoma

NORMAN, Okla. – The No. 34 South Carolina men’s tennis team (8-1, 1-0 SEC) opened up SEC play on Saturday afternoon at No. 18 Oklahoma in a thrilling match where the Gamecocks fought to the very end and pulled out a gritty 4-3 after claiming the doubles point and wins on three singles courts.

Oklahoma came out swinging early in doubles play as all three of the Gamecock pairs were trailing 1-0 before quickly battling back to even things up across the board. At the top of the lineup, No. 28 Lucas da Silva and Paul Barbier Gazeu settled into a tight back-and-forth with Luis Alvarez and Bruno Nhavene. The Gamecock duo pushed ahead 5-3 to reach match point, but the Sooners responded by rattling off a flawless game to close the gap to 5-4. The Garnet & Black didn’t let up, ultimately securing a 6-4 win after a dominant serve from Gazeu. The victory marked their eighth consecutive doubles win together and their sixth straight in dual match play, as the pair remains undefeated this season.

With momentum shifting, the remaining courts were locked in tight matches. At the No. 2 position Sean Daryabeigi and Max Stenzer were tied at 5-5 with Orel Kimhi and Johan Rodriguez, while Atakan Karahan and Cole Henceroth fought to stay within striking distance against Oscar Lacides and Asahi Harazaki at the bottom of the lineup, narrowly trailing 5-4. Daryabeigi and Stenzer surged ahead 6-5 and closed strong, claiming a 7-5 upset over the No. 71 ranked pair to put the Gamecocks on the board after clinching the doubles point.

Singles started off split with the Gamecocks picking up first set wins from the top three positions and the Sooners claiming wins on the bottom three courts. Barbier and Gazeu won 6-4 and 7-5 respectively while Daryabeigi fought through a tiebreak to come out on top for his opening set 7-6. The Sooners earned an edge over the Gamecocks following straight set wins over Karahan and Stenzer to lead 2-1. South Carolina attempted to tie the match back up as Gazeu reached match point leading 5-3 in his second set, but Johan Rodriguez claimed a game, winning on a deuce. The redshirt freshman remained resilient, ultimately claiming the singles win in straight sets to level out the match 2-2.

Things then started to look rocky for the Gamecocks as Daryabeigi and da Silva’s matches were sent to third sets after both Gamecocks dropped their second sets 6-1 and 7-6, respectively. Daryabeigi struggled in his third, dropping his final set 6-0 as the Sooners took back the lead at 3-2. The Gamecocks responded quickly with da Silva pulling through, winning his final set comfortably 6-3 to tie everything up 3-3. It all came down to the bottom of the lineup where Charlie Swaine battling in his third set. The freshman jumped to a 2-0 lead but his opponent tied up the set at 3-3. The two traded points back and forth until the match was locked at 4-4. Swaine then took off, winning the final two consecutive games to clinch the 4-3 win for the Gamecocks.

The Gamecocks wrap up their road trip in Arkansas, facing the No. 29 Razorbacks on Monday, Feb. 23 at 2:00 p.m. (ET).

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

No. 34 South Carolina 4, No. 18 Oklahoma 3

DOUBLES (order of finish: 1, 2)

28 Lucas da Silva/Paul Barbier Gazeu (SC) def. Luis Alvarez/Bruno Nhavene (OU) 6-4
86 Sean Daryabeigi/Max Stenzer (SC) def. No. 71 Orel Kimhi/Johan Rodriguez (OU) 7-5
Oscar Lacides/Asahi Harazaki (OU) led Atakan Karahan/Cole Henceroth (SC) 6-5

SINGLES (order of finish: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 6)