Liberty University
No. 1 South seed FGCU
Liberty Wins 2021 ASUN Championship Crown, 4-0 Over FGCU, for First Title in Program History
4/24/2021 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
The 48th-ranked Liberty Flames secured the 2021 ASUN Men's Tennis Championship title on Saturday morning at the UNF Tennis Complex, defeating FGCU 4-0 for its their ASUN title.
The Flames' conference title is also their first in the program's history, which dates back to 1987. Liberty picks up its 20th win of the season in the process, adding to its school record win total. The Flames are 20-7 this season with their first-ever victory over the Eagles in their third attempt.
FGCU slips to 8-6 and sees its four-match winning streak halted.
Liberty has secured the ASUN's automatic bid to the 2021 Division I Men's Tennis Championship, which will begin on May 7. The Flames will find out who they face in the first round of the NCAA Tournament with the 2021 NCAA Men's Tennis Selection Show airing on May 3 at 6:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.
Liberty's Rafael Marques Da Silva and Deji Thomas-Smith were each named to the ASUN All-Tournament team, with Marques Da Silva receiving ASUN Championship MVP honors.
Championship-Clinching Moment
Liberty's Thomas-Smith won his opening set at No. 4 singles with Felipe Ramirez 7-5, and the two competitors were tied 4-4 in the second set when Thomas-Smith broke serve to take a 5-4 lead. Here is how the final game unfolded with Thomas-Smith serving:
• 0-0
• 15-0 – Thomas-Smith forehand winner
• 30-0 – Thomas-Smith service ace
• 30-15 – Ramirez point
• 30-30 – Ramirez point
• 40-30 – Thomas-Smith forehand cross court winner
• Match/Championship Point – Thomas-Smith wide serve in, Ramirez backhand return long
Thoughts From Head Coach Derek Schwandt
"Looking back on where we started just four years ago, how all these guys got to Liberty together and how our family was brought up to Liberty, I want to thank God for that. He's the reason that we're here and that I am where I am today. I have a beautiful family and two beautiful kids. God is good.
"It's a great reward. Hard work doesn't always get rewarded right away. Eventually, it does. With these guys, I think of perseverance. This whole year, last year, when the season ended all the way up until now, they didn't get down on themselves. They stayed motivated. They stayed hungry. We look up to Rafael Nadal. Stay hungry, stay humble is his motto. We've adopted that on our team. I'm super proud of the guys and how they persisted all season. We're blessed to stay together all the way so far."
#48 #1N Liberty 4, #1S FGCU 0
Singles Competition
1. #94 Nicaise Muamba (LIBERTYM) vs. #71 JOHNSON, Magnus (FGCU) 7-6 (7-3), 2-3, unfinished
2. R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) def. MONTES, Juan (FGCU) 7-5, 6-1
3. Josh Wilson (LIBERTYM) vs. WILSON, Randy (FGCU) 6-4, 3-6, 4-3, unfinished
4. Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) def. RAMIREZ, Felipe (FGCU) 7-5, 6-4
5. Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) vs. STEFANACCI, Gugli (FGCU) 1-6, 6-4, 4-2, unfinished
6. Thando Longwe-Smit (LIBERTYM) def. CONCA, Alessandro (FGCU) 6-4, 6-4
Doubles Competition
1. Deji Thomas-Smith/Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) def. JOHNSON, Magnus/DAMM, Max (FGCU) 7-6 (7-4)
2. Nicaise Muamba/R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) def. MONTES, Juan/RAMIREZ, Felipe (FGCU) 6-3
3. ONCINS, Eric/WILSON, Randy (FGCU) def. Josh Wilson/Steve Mundt (LIBERTYM) 6-3
#1S FGCU 8-6
#1N Liberty 20-7; National ranking #48
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (2,6,4)
2021 ASUN Men's Tennis Championship Final
T-2:50 A-62
How It Happened
• The Flames won the doubles point in thrilling fashion, doing so in a tiebreaker on court one. Liberty's Deji Thomas-Smith and Christiaan Worst trailed 6-5 to Magnus Johnson and Max Damm, but Thomas-Smith held serve to set up the tiebreaker.
• In the tiebreaker, Thomas-Smith took over, putting away several balls at the net and helping the Flames duo build a 6-1 advantage. FGCU won the next three points to trim the Liberty lead to 6-4, but the Flames' Worst closed out the match with a smash from in front of the net to win the match, 7-6 (7-4). Worst and Thomas Smith's 10th triumph of the season made it 1-0 Flames.
• Liberty fell behind early in the doubles session, as FGCUs Eric Oncins and Randy Wilson defeated Josh Wilson and Steve Mundt 6-3 at No. 3 doubles. The loss was Wilson and Mundt's first of the season, as they fell to 7-1.
• The Flames' Nicaise Muamba and Rafael Marques Da Silva (No. 2 doubles) overcame a 3-2 deficit to Juan Montes and Felipe Ramirez to win 6-3. Muamba and Marques Da Silva's victory was their second in as many days and team-best 16th of the season.
• Liberty trailed on five of six courts in the early part of the singles session but worked its way back to win five of six opening sets. The biggest turnaround came from No. 94 Muamba at No. 1 singles versus No. 71 Johnson. Muamba fell behind 5-2 before clawing back to win the first set in a tiebreaker, 7-6 (3). Liberty's Thomas-Smith (No. 4 singles) trailed Montes 5-4 in the opening set but came back to win 7-5.
• Tied 5-5 in his first set with Montes on court two, ASUN Championship MVP Marques Da Silva won that set 7-5 and cruised to a 6-1 victory in the second for a 7-5, 6-1 win. Marques Da Silva's second singles triumph of the weekend and team-best 19th of the season pushed the Flames' advantage to 2-0.
• Marques Da Silva posted a perfect 6-0 overall record in his first ASUN Championship. Marques Da Silva was 3-0 at No. 2 singles and 3-0 at No. 2 doubles with his partner, Muamba.
• The Flames' Longwe-Smit, who earned a singles win for Liberty against Kennesaw State yesterday, picked up his second singles point of the weekend. The redshirt freshman battled past Alessandro Conca in straight sets (6-4, 6-4), bringing Liberty's lead up to 3-0.
• Thomas-Smith's aforementioned victory to clinch the championship, 7-5, 6-4 versus Ramirez on court four, was his second singles triumph of the weekend. The second-year Flame finished the ASUN Tournament with a 3-0 singles mark and 1-0 doubles record.
• The Flames' Wilson (No. 3 singles) and Worst (No. 5 singles) each held leads in the third sets of their respective matches when play was halted. Muamba was up a set and trailed Johnson 3-2 in the second set when his match went unfinished.
• Today's 4-0 sweep for Liberty marks the first 4-0 sweep in an ASUN Championship final since North Florida swept USC Upstate 4-0 in 2016.
• Liberty is 3-1 all-time in the ASUN Tournament, with all three victories coming in the last eight days. Today's match was the Flames' first-ever appearance in a conference final.
• The Flames are 9-2 as a nationally-ranked squad this season.
• Including conference tournament play, the Flames finished 9-0 in ASUN matches this spring.
• With 20 wins this season, Liberty is now four victories past the previous school record of 16 victories, set in 1990.
Next Up
• Liberty will begin preparing for its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Team Championship. The 2021 NCAA Men's Tennis Selection Show will take place on May 3 at 6:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.
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— Liberty Men's Tennis (@LibertyMTennis) April 24, 2021
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Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,2,1
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
2,6,4