Liberty University
No. 3 seed Coastal Carolina
Underdog Flames Down Chanticleers to Advance
4/21/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
The No. 6 seeded Liberty men's tennis team knocked off No. 3 seed Coastal Carolina in the first-round of the 2011 Big South Men's Tennis Championship by a score of 4-1, Thursday. The upset victory for the Flames advances them to the semifinal round for the second time in program history.
With the victory, Liberty improves its record to 10-11. The 10 wins give the program its third-straight year with a double-digit win total, a first in program history. Meanwhile, the defeat ends Coastal Carolina's season with an 11-8 record.
Looking for a different result than the regular-season matchup, Liberty began the contest by scoring the doubles point. Siim Tuus and Benjamin Wirth claimed the lead match, defeating Matt Gordon and Peter Billingham, 8-4. Shea Thomas and Giancarlo Lemmi then wrapped up doubles play by taking down Alex Funkhouser and Dorian Sovic, 8-6, in the No. 2 contest to give Liberty a 1-0 lead.
While the Chanticleers' Danny Heidecker scored the first singles point of the match in the No. 4 position, the Flames' Thomas quickly responded by scoring a 7-6, 6-4 win over Funkhouser in the No. 3 contest, allowing Liberty to maintain a one point edge.
Similarly to the regular-season matchup, the remaining four matches were headed toward a third and deciding set. Wirth edged the Flames closer to victory by scoring a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 defeat of Billingham in the No. 6 match, avenging his three-set loss to Billingham in their regular-season meeting.
Tuus then ended the match with a victory in the lead singles position, taking down Matt Gordon, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 to move the Flames into the semifinal round.
Liberty returns to the courts at Winthrop University in Rock Hill S.C., tomorrow, facing No. 2 seed Radford. The Highlanders defeated Presbyterian College 4-0 this afternoon. Start time for the Flames versus Highlanders is slated for 1 p.m.
Liberty 4, Coastal Carolina 1
Doubles:
1. Siim Tuus/Benjamin Wirth (LU) def. Matt Gordon/Peter Billingham (CCU) 8-4
2. Shea Thomas/Giancarlo Lemmi (LU) def. Alex Funkhouser/Dorian Sovic (CCU) 8-6
3. Danny Heidecker/Yusuke Kusuda (CCU) vs. Tristan Stayt/Mandeep Yadav (LU) unfinished
Singles:
1. Siim Tuus (LU) def. Matt Gordon (CCU) 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
2. Yusuke Kusuda (CCU) vs. Tristan Stayt (LU) 6-3, 6-6, unfinished
3. Shea Thomas (LU) def. Alex Funkhouser (CCU) 7-6, 6-4
4. Danny Heidecker (CCU) def. Giancarlo Lemmi (LU) 6-4, 6-1
5. Leo Christofides (CCU) vs. Mandeep Yadav (LU) 4-6, 6-2, 3-1, unfinished
6. Benjamin Wirth (LU) def. Peter Billingham (CCU) 6-2, 3-6, 6-2
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match