Liberty University
No. 4 North seed Bellarmine
40th-Ranked Flames Advance After 4-0 ASUN Quarterfinal Triumph Versus Knights
4/17/2021 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
The 40th-ranked Liberty Flames advanced to the 2021 ASUN Men's Tennis Championship semifinal round by defeating Bellarmine 4-0 in the ASUN quarterfinals on Saturday afternoon at the Liberty Tennis Complex.
The Flames, who improved to 18-7 this season after defeating the Knights for the second straight Saturday, move on to face the lowest remaining seed in the ASUN South Division in the semifinals, which is still to be determined at this point. The semifinals and finals of the ASUN Championship will be contested at the UNF Tennis Complex in Jacksonville, Fla., next Friday and Saturday.
Liberty caps off a perfect 12-0 season at home in 2021. The Flames have finished unbeaten at home in two of the last three seasons.
Bellarmine ends its season with a 4-20 record. This was the Knights' first season in the ASUN and first full season at the Division I level.
Liberty went 3-0 against Bellarmine this season and is 4-0 all-time versus the Knights. The Flames outscored the Knights 18-0 in the three meetings, this season.
#40 Liberty 4, Bellarmine 0
Singles Competition
1. #90 Nicaise Muamba (LIBERTYM) vs. Cole Groetsch (BELL) 6-0, 5-2, unfinished
2. R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) def. Paul Reynolds (BELL) 6-2, 6-0
3. Josh Wilson (LIBERTYM) vs. Emil B. Berglund (BELL) 6-0, 5-2, unfinished
4. Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) def. Sam Rueff (BELL) 6-0, 6-0
5. Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) vs. Michael Staff (BELL) 6-2, 5-1, unfinished
6. Thando Longwe-Smit (LIBERTYM) def. Eli Franks (BELL) 6-3, 6-0
Doubles Competition
1. Deji Thomas-Smith/Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) vs. Cole Groetsch/Michael Staff (BELL) 5-4, unfinished
2. Nicaise Muamba/R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) def. Eli Franks/Emil B. Berglund (BELL) 6-0
3. Josh Wilson/Steve Mundt (LIBERTYM) def. Paul Reynolds/Sam Rueff (BELL) 6-3
Bellarmine 4-20
Liberty 18-7; National ranking #40
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3); Singles (4,6,2)
2021 ASUN Men's Tennis Championship Quarterfinals
Official: D Harrison/A Sarver T-1:35
How It Happened
• Liberty won the doubles point and three singles matches (No. 4, No. 6 and No. 2), each in straight sets.
• The Flames' No. 2 doubles team, Nicaise Muamba and Rafael Marques Da Silva, rolled to a 6-0 victory against Eli Franks and Emil B. Berglund. Liberty wrapped up the doubles point and a 1-0 edge when Josh Wilson and Steve Mundt (No. 3 doubles) bested Paul Reynolds and Sam Rueff 6-3.
• Muamba and Marques Da Silva's win was their team-best 14th of the season. Meanwhile, Wilson and Mundt stayed unbeaten, improving to 6-0.
• Liberty won all six first sets in singles. The Flames' Deji Thomas-Smith was the first to close out his match, doing so without losing a game (6-0, 6-0) against Rueff on court four.
• Liberty extended its advantage to 3-0, as Longwe-Smit defeated Franks 6-3, 6-0 in the No. 6 singles contest.
• The Flames' fourth and final point came from Marques Da Silva (No. 2 singles), who topped Reynolds 6-2, 6-0 for his team-leading 17th singles win.
• Liberty's No. 1, No. 3 and No. 5 singles players – Muamba, Wilson and Christiaan Worst – were each one game away from winning in straight sets over their opponents when their matches were halted.
• Today's victory is Liberty's first-ever win in the ASUN Championship. The Flames dropped an ASUN semifinal match in 2019. The 2020 ASUN Men's Tennis Championship was not contested due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The Flames now hold a 7-2 mark as a nationally-ranked team.
Next Up
• The Flames will await their opponent in the ASUN Championship semifinals, which will be the lowest remaining seed in the ASUN South Division. Liberty's semifinal match will take place on Friday at 9 a.m. at the UNF Tennis Complex.
• The 2021 ASUN Men's Tennis Championship title match will be held next Saturday at 10 a.m. and can be seen on ESPN+.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,3
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
4,6,2