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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Columbia - NCAA Second Round
Scholtz Wins Final Home Match
5/9/2015 | Men's Tennis
Complete Results | Photo Gallery 
OXFORD, Miss. -- Senior Nik Scholtz won his final home match in a Rebel uniform, but it was not enough, as the No. 14 Ole Miss men's tennis team fell to 17th-ranked Columbia 4-1 here Saturday afternoon in the NCAA second round at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center.
The Rebels season ends at 18-9, while Columbia (16-5) advances to the Sweet Sixteen to face Virginia.
"It was a very tough day," head coach Toby Hansson said. "Obviously it's disappointing when you lose. We thought we had a good chance to win this match today, and we just couldn't get it done."
The match started an hour and 15 minutes late due to rain in the morning. Special thanks goes to the Oxford Park Commission for loaning the athletics department several squeegees, so the grounds crew could get the courts dried in a little over an hour.
Once play began, Columbia jumped on the Rebels in doubles, taking an 8-3 win at No. 2, followed by an 8-5 win at three to go up 1-0.
"We came out a little slow in doubles and didn't have the energy and positive body language," Hansson said. "When things didn't go our way, we let it affect us a little."
The Rebels would battle back to take four first sets in singles, including at No. 1, where Scholtz would tie the match with a straight set win. Scholtz, ranked No. 18, defeated 17th-ranked Winston Lin of Columbia 6-4, 6-3 to finish his career winning 23 of his last 24 matches at home. He ended the season 16-5 at No. 1 singles and will now head to the NCAA Individual Championships seeking to become the first four-time All-American in the history of the program. Â
Columbia regained the lead, as Shawn Hadavi won a huge first set tiebreaker against Rebel sophomore Ricardo Jorge, 7-6(2) at No. 5 singles and carried the momentum into the second set to win 6-2.
The Lions went ahead 3-1 when Ashok Narayana closed out Rebel freshman Gustav Hansson 6-3, 7-6(2) at No. 3 singles.
Vinod Gowda was up a set and had a chance to go up 3-1 in the second set at No. 6, but Columbia's Bret Vancura erased the break points then and later in the set at 4-4. After he held, he broke Gowda to win the set 6-4. With momentum on his side, Vancura raced out to a comfortable lead in the third set and finished off Gowda 6-1 to clinch the 4-1 win.
"I told the guys we had an opportunity in singles, and even though we didn't play our best, we battled," Hansson said. "We had chances on several different courts. I have to give Columbia a lot of credit for hanging around and never giving up on all the courts."
When play was stopped, senior William Kallberg was in the third set against Mike Vermeer on court four, and Stefan Lindmark was in the third on court two.
"Overall I am very pleased with the season," Hansson said. "With a little perspective I think the guys will realize that we've done some good things this year."
Scholtz will begin competing in the NCAA Singles Championship May 20 in Waco, Texas and also in the doubles with freshman Zvonimir Babic.
For more information on Ole Miss Men's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMTennis, on Facebook at OleMissMTennis and on Instagram at OleMissMTennis.
NCAA Men's Tennis Second Round
Columbia 4, (14) Ole Miss 1
Doubles
1. Scholtz/Lindmark (OM) vs. #46 Lin/Vermeer (CU) 5-6, sus.
2. #84 Narayana/Ignat (CU) def. Hansson/Kallberg (OM) 8-3
3. Schnur/Vancura (CU) def. Hamilton/Babic (OM) 8-5
Order of Finish: 2, 3
Singles
1. #18 Nik Scholtz (OM) def. #17 Winston Lin (CU) 6-4, 6-3
2. #86 Stefan Lindmark (OM) vs. #108 Dragos Ignat (CU) 7-6(7), 4-6, 2-1, sus.
3. Ashok Narayana (CU) def. Gustav Hansson (OM) 6-3, 7-6(2)
4. William Kallberg (OM) vs. Mike Vermeer (CU) 7-6 (5), 6-7(6), 1-2, sus.
5. Shawn Hadavi (CU) def. Ricardo Jorge (OM) 7-6(2), 6-2
6. Bert Vancura (CU) def. Vinod Gowda (OM) 4-6, 6-4, 6-1
Order of Finish: 1, 5, 3, 6
Players Mentioned
