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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Texas A&M - ITA Kick-Off Weekend
Rebels Take Down No. 15 Texas A&M
1/29/2017 | Men's Tennis
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - For the second straight day, the Ole Miss men's tennis team went the distance, but this time they won the final two matches for a 4-3 win at Texas A&M Sunday, in the consolation match of the ITA Kick-Off.
Junior Grey Hamilton provided the heroics, rallying in the third set against A&M's James Martell to win his match and clinch the team victory for the Rebels. The first two sets would be decided in tiebreakers, with Hamilton winning the first one, 7-6(4) and Martell the second, 7-6(4). Martell used that momentum to gain a 3-0 advantage early in the third, before Hamilton rattled off four straight games to take a 4-3 lead. Martell broke back for 4-4, but then Hamilton broke again and held serve for the win.
The Rebels took the early lead in the match, winning a close doubles point. Fabian Fallert and Hamilton, ranked No. 13 nationally, defeated No. 7 Arthur Rinderknech and Max Lunkin 6-4 and then Zvonimir Babic and Ricardo Jorge finished off a 6-4 win at No. 3 to clinch the point.
A&M responded in singles with two straight-set victories on courts five and two to take a 2-1 lead.
Jorge won for the second straight day, topping Aggie Alexsandre Bakshi 6-4, 6-3 at No. 3 to square it at 2.
For the second day in a row, Fallert went to three sets, but A&M's Jordi Arconada came out on top in the third 6-3 to give the Aggies the lead just as the remaining two matches were in third sets.
In a battle between two top 20 ranked players, 14th-ranked Gustav Hansson set up Hamilton for the clinch with a dominating performance in the third set against Rinderknech, who is ranked No. 16. Hansson won a tiebreaker in the first set 7-6(3), but Rinderknech forced a third set, taking the second set 6-2. Hansson broke early and cruised 6-1 to even the overall match.
At the Net...
• The Rebels improved to 2-1 on the season
• This marks the team's first win against A&M since 2014 when they also beat the Aggies 4-3
• This marked the first time for Grey Hamilton to clinch the win as the last match on
• Gustav Hansson improved to 13-4 in three-set matches dating back to last year
• Hansson is now 11-4 overall and 3-0 at No. 1 singles
• Ricardo Jorge is now 3-0 in dual matches this year
• Fabian Fallert and Hamilton defeated the No. 7 ranked doubles team to improve to 11-4 overall, 2-1 at No. 1 doubles
• Zvonimir Babic and Jorge are now 5-1 in doubles this year
Complete Results
Doubles
1. #13 Fallert/Hamilton (OM) def. #7 Rinderknech./Lunkin (TAMU) 6-4
2. Bakshi/Catanzariti (TAMU) def. #57 Hansson/Sandkaulen (OM) 6-4
3. Babic/Jorge (OM) def. Arconada/Vacherot (TAMU) 6-4
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3
Singles
1. #14 Gustav Hansson (OM) def. #16 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) 7-6(3), 2-6, 6-1
2. AJ Catanzariti (TAMU) def. #83 Tim Sandkaulen (OM) 6-3, 6-4
3. Ricardo Jorge (OM) def. Alexsandre Bakshi (TAMU) 6-4, 6-3
4. Jordi Arconada (TAMU) def. Fabian Fallert (OM) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
5. Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) def. Zvonimir Babic (OM) 6-2, 6-2
6. Grey Hamilton (OM) def. James Martell (TAMU) 7-6(4), 6-7(4), 6-4
Order of Finish: 5, 2, 3, 4, 1, 6
Thoughts from head coach Toby Hansson...
"We are very proud of the guys' effort from top to bottom, we competed really hard. Today presented us an opportunity to play a top-15 team and one of the top teams in the SEC and it was great to bounce back after a tough loss on Saturday. I am very happy for the team, this was a team victory."
On having Gus at the top spot...
"Playing No. 1, Gus is facing the other team's best player and usually one of the top players in the country. It boosts the team's confidence to have a guy like him at that at the top."
On Grey's match...
"Grey hasn't been in that situation before in his career, but he did a fantastic job of staying composed. In the end he got the job done and we are very happy for him."
On confidence this gives team moving forward...
"Obviously this gives us a lot of confidence. A&M has a very strong team and they barely lost to Baylor Saturday. They're a top 10 team for sure, and we showed we can compete with the best teams in the nation."
Up next...
The Rebels are back in action Feb. 11 at No. 7 North Carolina.
For more information on Ole Miss Men's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter @OleMissMTennis, on Facebook at OleMissMTennis and on Instagram at OleMissMTennis, follow Coach Hansson on Twitter at @TennisToby.
Players Mentioned
