Liberty University
Charlotte
Liberty Men's Tennis Bests Charlotte 5-2, Sets New Program Record With 17th Win
4/11/2021 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
The Liberty men's tennis team made history on Sunday with a 5-2 victory over the visiting Charlotte 49ers at the Liberty Tennis Complex, setting a new program record with its 17th win of the season.
The 43rd-ranked Flames improve to 17-6 on the season and kept their unbeaten home season alive at 11-0. Liberty's record-setting triumph breaks a tie with the 1990 squad, who held the school record for most wins in a season with 16 for the last 31 years.
Charlotte falls to 11-9 on the season and has lost back-to-back matches for only the second time this season. The Flames complete a two-match sweep of the 49ers this season. Liberty edged Charlotte 4-3, Feb. 7 on the road.
Thoughts From Head Coach Derek Schwandt
"It was a strong team effort today. We will enjoy this for 24 hours, then it's time to reset fight."
#43 Liberty 5, Charlotte 2
Singles Competition
1. #82 Nicaise Muamba (LIBERTYM) def. #90 Henry Lieberman (CLT) 6-4, 6-0
2. R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) def. #88 Ignasi de Rueda (CLT) 6-3, 6-3
3. Josh Wilson (LIBERTYM) def. Ben Wayand (CLT) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
4. Stefanos Savva (CLT) def. Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) 4-6, 7-6 (7-1), 1-0 (10-5)
5. Leo Menezes (CLT) def. Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) 6-3, 6-2
6. Thando Longwe-Smit (LIBERTYM) def. Vanja Dobrnjac (CLT) 6-1, 6-0
Doubles Competition
1. Christiaan Worst/Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) def. Henry Lieberman/Leo Menezes (CLT) 6-4
2. Nicaise Muamba/R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) vs. Ignasi de Rueda/Ben Wayand (CLT) 4-3, unfinished
3. Josh Wilson/Steve Mundt (LIBERTYM) def. Collin Thomson/Cole Brainard (CLT) 6-3
Charlotte 11-9
Liberty 17-6; National ranking #43
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (6,1,2,5,3,4)
Official: D Harrison/M Sarver T-2:35
How It Happened
• Liberty's No. 3 and No. 1 doubles teams delivered to give the hosts a 1-0 edge in the match. The Flames' No. 3 team, Josh Wilson and Steve Mundt, moved to 4-0 in the No. 3 slot with their 6-3 decision versus Collin Thomson and Cole Brainard. Liberty's top unit, Christiaan Worst and Deji Thomas-Smith, stayed hot with a 6-4 win over Henry Lieberman and Leo Menezes to secure the doubles point. Worst and Thomas-Smith are 9-5 on the year and have won three straight doubles contests.
• The Flames No. 6, No. 1 and No. 2 singles players were all dominant in winning in straight sets to put Liberty ahead 4-0 and officially clinch the record-setting 17th win. First, Liberty's Thando Longwe-Smit claimed win number 10 on the year, defeating Vanja Dobrnjac 6-1, 6-0 on court six.
• No. 82 Nicaise Muamba (No. 1 singles) earned his fourth ranked singles win of the season, besting No. 90 Lieberman 6-4, 6-0.
• Liberty's Rafael Marques Da Silva squared off with No. 88 Ignasi De Rueda for the second time this season. De Rueda edged Marques Da Silva in three sets 63 days ago, but it was Marques Da Silva who came out on top today, 6-3, 6-3 at No. 2 singles. Marques Da Silva's first career ranked singles win made it 4-0, officially giving the Flames the milestone 17th victory.
• Two of the last three matches went to Charlotte. The 49ers' first point of the day came from Menezes, who topped Worst in straight sets (6-3, 6-2) in the No. 5 slot.
• Liberty's Josh Wilson, playing in his first singles match since March 10, won a three-set battle versus Ben Wayand on court three, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Wilson's win provided the Flames a 5-1 advantage.
• The final match on court four between Thomas-Smith (Liberty) and Stefanos Savva (Charlotte) went to Savva in three sets, 4-6, 7-6 (1), 1-0 (5).
• Muamba and Marques Da Silva share the team lead with 16 singles victories apiece.
• Liberty is 3-1 all-time against Charlotte, including 2-0 this year.
• The 1990 Flames squad, which held the program record for wins for the last 31 years, finished 16-5 under Carl Diemer in what was only the fourth season in school history.
• The Flames have won nine of their last 10 matches. Liberty is 6-1 as a nationally-ranked team.
Next Up
• The Flames will play one final regular season match before ASUN Championship play next weekend. Liberty will head to Clemson (7-13) for a Tuesday afternoon (2 p.m.) match at the Duckworth Family Tennis Center in Clemson, S.C.
• Liberty is 0-2 all-time versus Clemson, but the two schools have not faced each other since 2004.
–The Moment–
— Liberty Men's Tennis (@LibertyMTennis) April 12, 2021
Here's the moment when Rafael Marques Da Silva won his No. 2 singles match today to clinch the win over Charlotte. His victory officially gave us our record-setting 1?7?th victory of the season!??#WeBeforeMe #RiseWithUs #ASUNTennis pic.twitter.com/8kaCqWt14w
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,1
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
6,1,2,5,3,4