Men’s Tennis Falls Short in Comeback Against South Carolina

OXFORD, Miss. – The No. 51 Ole Miss men's team dropped a hard-fought matchup against the 16th-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks on Sunday as the Rebels fell, 4-3, at the Carolina Tennis Center.

The Rebels (9-9, 2-5 SEC) fought their way to the very end against the Gamecocks (9-9. 3-4 SEC), staying within striking distance in nearly every match. Although Ole Miss was unable to pick up the victory, Isac Stromberg, Noah Schlagenhauf and John Hallquist Lithen captured significant individual wins.

To open the day in doubles, the Rebels battled with some difficult matchups. Stromberg and Schlagenhauf started the day off hot tallying their first conference win as a tandem, 6-3, on court three.

With hard-fought matches across all three courts, the Gamecocks were able to prevail with 6-3 and 7-5 victories on courts one and two, claiming the doubles point.

Schlagenhauf kept his momentum going from doubles into singles as the sophomore earned a quick victory on court five, 6-1, 7-5, to tie the score up 1-1. Lukas Engelhardt and Carson Baker each dropped their singles matchups and allowed the Gamecocks to sit one away from claiming the match.

Lithen stepped up to the plate by stringing together his first ranked win of the year after dropping No. 105 Casey Hoole in straight sets, 6-1, 7-6 (7-3).

Stromberg got the Rebels all tied up again with the Gamecocks after a gritty performance on court three. The youngster battled his way to the comeback after dropping his first set, 6-0, before grinding out 6-4 and 6-3 set victories to put the Rebels in striking distance.

Despite a close matchup on court one, Nikola Slavic was ultimately unable to push past No. 21 Toby Samuel, falling 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.

Up Next
Ole Miss will continue its road spell by heading south to Starkville, Miss. for an in-state matchup against Mississippi State, Friday, March 29 at 5 p.m. CT.

Rebels on Social
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.

#16 South Carolina 4, #51 Ole Miss 3

Singles
1. #21 Toby Samuel (SC) def. #62 Nikola Slavic (OM) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
2. J. Hallquist Lithen (OM) def. #105 Casey Hoole (SC) 6-1, 7-6 (7-3)
3. Isac Stromberg (OM) def. James Story (SC) 0-6, 6-4, 6-3
4. Sean Daryabeigi (SC) def. Lukas Engelhardt (OM) 7-5, 6-1
5. Noah Schlagenhauf (OM) def. Jelani Sarr (SC) 6-1, 7-5
6. Lucas da Silva (SC) def. Carson Baker (OM) 7-5, 6-1

Doubles
1. #19 Toby Samuel/Casey Hoole (SC) def. #65 Nikola Slavic/Lukas Engelhardt (OM) 6-3
2. Lucas da Silva/James Story (SC) def. Carson Baker/J. Hallquist Lithen (OM) 7-5
3. Isac Stromberg/Noah Schlagenhauf (OM) def. Sean Daryabeigi/Jelani Sarr (SC) 6-3

Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (5,4,6,2,3,1)

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Team Stats

Players Mentioned

Carson Baker

Lukas Engelhardt

Noah Schlagenhauf

Nikola Slavic

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