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No. 16 Men’s Tennis Set for Alabama Road Trip
Men's Tennis  . 

No. 16 Men’s Tennis Set for Alabama Road Trip

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The No. 16 South Carolina men’s tennis team (11-5, 4-4 SEC) hits the road this weekend, continuing SEC play with a pair of matches in Alabama. The Gamecocks are slated to face No. 49 Alabama on Friday, March 27 at 7:00 p.m. (ET) before rounding out the weekend against No. 23 Auburn on Sunday, March 29 at 1:00 p.m. (ET).

GAMECOCK NOTABLES

  • Last time out, the Gamecocks snapped their three-match losing streak and captured the first SEC home win of the season in a 4-2 showing over then-No. 27 Kentucky.
  • South Carolina started the match off on a high note, clinching the doubles point to earn an early lead. Gabe Avram and Charlie Swaine struck first in a dominant 6-1 victory, extending their win streak as a pair to two consecutive. Sean Daryabeigi and Max Stenzer secured the first point of the match in a 6-4 win from the second position.
  • It was a tight match in singles as all six courts went to third sets. The victory was backed by wins from Daryabeigi, Stenzer and Paul Barbier Gazeu, with Daryabeigi and Stenzer earning ranked wins over No. 99 and No. 55, respectively.
  • The Gamecocks are 4-0 on the road this season, with three of those wins coming over SEC opponents.
  • In dual matches, Gazeu has the most singles wins with a record of 11-3. Lucas da Silva follows closely behind, going 10-3 from the top of the lineup. Daryabeigi and Swaine have eight wins apiece.
  • Gazeu and da Silva hold the strongest doubles record in dual match season with an 8-2 standing, going 7-2 from the top of the lineup. Daryabeigi and Stenzer have a 7-4 record.

IN THE RANKINGS

  • In the ITA team rankings released earlier this week, the Gamecocks remained at No. 16.
  • Da Silva leads the team in singles rankings, sitting at No. 15, which is the highest ranking he has achieved in his collegiate career. Daryabeigi follows at No. 57 and Gazeu rounds out the Garnet & Black representation at No. 105.
  • In doubles, da Silva and Gazeu are ranked amongst the best in the nation at No. 8, while da Silva and Daryabeigi sit at No. 60. Daryabeigi and Stenzer fell are ranked No. 88.

WEEKLY AWARD WATCH

  • South Carolina has earned five SEC weekly awards so far this season from three different Gamecocks.
  • Da Silva was named Player of the Week twice, on Feb. 11 and Feb. 25.
  • Gazeu picked up two Freshman of the Week honors on Jan. 21 and Feb. 11.
  • Swaine shared a Freshman of the Week honor with Georgia’s Noah Johnson on Feb. 25.
  • The Gamecocks have swept the weekly awards twice this season. 

SCOUTING THE CRIMSON TIDE

No. 49 Alabama holds a 9-11 record and 3-6 conference standing, entering the match with back-to-back losses from then-No. 20 Florida and then-No.17 Oklahoma. Matic Kirznik leads the team with a 20-9 singles record, currently riding a two-match win streak. In the rankings, the team holds three tabs in singles with No. 79 Vit Kalina, No.94 Kriznik and No.109 Andrii Zimnokh. In doubles, Kalina and Zimnokh headline the Crimson Tide at the No. 33 spot with a 7-1 record. The pair are 5-1 in the conference, drawing their only loss from Arkansas. As a pairing, Kalina and Zimnokh have gone undefeated in the month of March, picking up five consecutive wins from the top of the lineup. Four of the victories were ranked.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS

No. 23 Auburn is 14-5 this season, going 4-4 in conference play. The Tigers enter the match on a three-match losing streak, coming off a 6-1 loss from Arkansas. Auburn faces LSU prior to their matchup with the Gamecocks on Sunday. Hamza Nasridinov leads the team with a 22-7 overall singles record going 8-5 from the first and second positions in dual matches. In the rankings, the Tigers hold two singles tabs with No. 40 Nasridinov followed by No. 76 Billy Blaydes. In doubles, Auburn has one ranked pair, the duo of brothers No.63 Billy and Freddy Blaydes.

SERIES HISTORY

  • South Carolina narrowly leads the all-time series record with Alabama 26-25. The Gamecocks enter tomorrow’s match riding on a six-match win streak, which the longest streak they’ve held in the series.
  • Auburn has a slight edge on the series record, leading 24-22. The Gamecocks have won 10 of the last 13 matches. Last season, South Carolina defeated the Tigers in a dominant 6-1 showing at home.

FOLLOW ALONG

Both matches will be streamed on TrackTennis with live scoring available on StatBroadcast for the Alabama match and play sight for Auburn. Links to each can be found on the schedule page. Fans can also follow along via in-match updates on X, @GamecockMTennis.

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

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