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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
SMU
Men’s Tennis Earns First Ranked Win of the Year in Thrilling 5-2 Victory Over SMU
2/26/2023 | Men's Tennis
Rebels Survive Match Points and Third Set Tiebreakers in Thrilling Victory Over No. 68 Mustangs
OXFORD, Miss. – The Ole Miss men's tennis team battled through a difficult test at Galtney Tennis Center, as the Rebels were able to clinch a hard-fought 5-2 ranked win over No. 68 SMU on Sunday.
The Rebels (7-2, 0-0 SEC) found themselves in a back-and-forth battle with the No. 68 team in the country, but despite the Mustangs (6-5, 0-0 AAC) putting them on the ropes with several match point and tiebreak opportunities, the Rebels prevailed to earn the team's first ranked win of 2023.
"Starting with doubles, it was all about saving match points today," head coach Toby Hansson said. "That was big for our momentum going into singles to be able to get that doubles point. In singles the guys did a good job at competing well, and then Isac and Lukas pulled it through for us with two gutsy performances in their matches. Just a heck of a performance from them today."
To start the day in doubles action, the Rebel duo of John Hallquist Lithen and Simon Junk got off to a hot start by jumping ahead 2-0 in their No. 2 doubles match. Following an injury for SMU, the duo captured a win via medical retirement to put Ole Miss in the driver's seat.
However, a quick response from the Mustangs in No. 3 doubles made things interesting, as the match's doubles point came down to the No. 1 doubles pairing of Nikola Slavic and Lukas Engelhardt to seal the deal against the No. 55 ranked doubles pairing in the nation.
A back-and-forth match from the beginning, Slavic and Engelhardt were able to force a 6-6 tiebreak to determine who earned the match doubles point. In the tiebreak, it was all Slavic and Engelhardt as the pair swept their way to a 7-0 tiebreak win, clinching a 1-0 start to Ole Miss' day.
With the win, Slavic and Engelhardt have now notched the team's first ranked doubles victory of 2022-23.
"It was really close there, I think we ended up saving three match points to win that one," Engelhardt said. "We found a way to win doubles, and that was the key for us to be able to get that first point."
Moving to singles play, John Hallquist Lithen took the Rebels' momentum from doubles and ran with it as the Gothenburg, Sweden, native cruised his way through his No. 2 singles matchup by earning a 6-1, 6-2 win. Lithen continues to lead the team in singles wins in 2022-23, now hitting win No. 13 of the year.
The Mustangs were able to respond, however, collecting singles victories on Court 1 and Court 5 to level the scoreboard at 2-2. With the remaining three matches all heading to third sets, it would come down to the likes of Lukas Engelhardt, Simon Junk and Isac Strömberg to decide the match for the Rebels.
Engelhardt would strike the first blow to the Mustangs' hopes, with the senior battling through a roller coaster of a match in the No. 4 position to secure a 6-4 win in the third set to put the Rebels one win away from clinching the match.
"It was a battle, and there were some challenges during that second set," Engelhardt said. "I'm just very happy I found a way to win that match. To be able to help the team get this win, it was just a very important one today for me against a very good team."
The team wouldn't have to wait long to celebrate, as freshman Isac Strömberg found his groove in Court 6 singles, battling his way back to clinch the match for the squad with a 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 win. Strömberg now increases his singles win streak up to four consecutive wins for the Rebels, standing as the longest active win streak for the team.
"I served pretty solid that whole match, but then that third set it just dropped a little bit for me," Strömberg said. "We were off serve the whole set until it was about 4-3, and I got my serve back so I just started hitting bombs. Once I started connecting on my serves, everything started going my way."
Simon Junk was able to add an exclamation mark to the Rebel victory by capturing his tiebreaker 10-8 to secure a 7-6(8) victory in No. 3 singles. When the dust finally settled in Galtney Tennis Center, the Rebels emerged victorious with a 5-2 scoreline.
Up Next
The Rebels now prepare for a busy stretch of home matches over the next week, starting on Thursday, March 2 when the team plays host to non conference foe St. John's at 2 p.m. CT. Ole Miss will then turn around on Saturday, March 4 for their first match of SEC play, with the Rebels hosting in-state rival Mississippi State. All matches are expected to be played at Palmer/Salloum Outdoor Tennis Center, weather permitting.
Ole Miss 5, SMU 2
Doubles
Nikola Slavic/Lukas Engelhardt (OM) def. No. 55 Neff/Kumar (SMU) 7-6(0)
John Hallquist Lithen/Simon Junk (OM) def. Steinhausen/Winkler (SMU) 2-0 retirement
Muniz Hidalgo/Krall (SMU) def. Isac Strömberg/Noah Schlagenhauf (OM) 6-2
Order of finish: 2, 3, 1
Singles
Adam Neff (SMU) def. No. 68 Nikola Slavic (OM) 6-3, 6-4
John Hallquist Lithen (OM) def. Pranav Kumar (SMU) 6-1, 6-2
Simon Junk (OM) def. Liam Krall (SMU) 3-6, 6-2, 7-6(8)
Lukas Engelhardt (OM) def. Antonio Muniz Hidalgo (SMU) 6-3, (5)6-7, 6-4
Julian Steinhausen (SMU) def. Noah Schlagenhauf (OM) 6-3, 6-4
Isac Strömberg (OM) def. Louis Cloud (SMU) 6-4, 2-6, 6-3
Order of finish: 2, 5, 1, 4, 6, 3
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, follow Coach Hansson on Twitter at @TennisToby.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,3,1
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
2,5,1,4,6,3
Players Mentioned
