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Liberty University
Penn State
Flames Fall Narrowly to Nittany Lions, 4-3, Friday Evening
2/11/2022 11:37:16 PM | Men's Tennis
In a lengthy battle that lasted nearly five hours, it was the Penn State Nittany Lions who edged the Liberty Flames 4-3 on Friday evening at the Penn State Indoor Tennis Center.
With the match tied 3-3, the No. 5 singles match decided the outcome. Penn State’s Miko Eala battled past Liberty’s Deji Thomas-Smith in three sets, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, to give the Nittany Lioins the victory.
Penn State bolsters its season record to 4-2 and runs its winning streak to four matches. Liberty drops to 2-4 on the year. The Nittany Lions even up the series at 1-all with the Flames. Liberty topped Penn State 5-2 in the first-ever meeting between the squads two years ago.
Penn State 4, Liberty 3
Singles Competition
- Nicaise Muamba (LIBERTYM) def. Malik Bhatnagar (PSU) 6-2, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3
- Josh Wilson (LIBERTYM) def. Chikaya Sato (PSU) 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2
- R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) def. Bora Sengul (PSU) 6-1, 6-4
- Loren Byers (PSU) def. Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) 6-4, 2-6, 6-2
- Miko Eala (PSU) def. Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
- Sam Bossem (PSU) def. Thando Longwe-Smit (LIBERTYM) 6-3, 6-4
Doubles Competition
- Malik Bhatnagar/Alexander Karman (PSU) def. Christiaan Worst/Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) 6-3
- Chikaya Sato/Bora Sengul (PSU) vs. Nicaise Muamba/R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) 5-6, unfinished
- Charl Morgan/Miko Eala (PSU) def. Josh Wilson/Goncalo Ferreira (LIBERTYM) 7-6 (7-2)
Liberty 2-4
Penn State 4-2
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (3,4,2,1,6,5)
T-4:41
How It Happened
• Penn State claimed the doubles point. The two teams split the six singles matches. Liberty won at No. 1, 2 and 3 singles, and Penn State was victorious at No. 4, 5 and 6 singles.
• The Nittany Lions earned the first point of the match in a close doubles session. Their top duo, Malik Bhatnagar and Alexander Karman, came out on top of the Flames’ Deji Thomas-Smith and Christiaan Worst 6-3.
• Liberty’s No. 3 pairing, Josh Wilson and Goncalo Ferreira, led 4-1 in their match with Charl Morgan and Miko Eala. Wilson and Ferreira also led 5-3 and 6-5, but Morgan and Eala came back for a 7-6 (2) win to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.
• The doubles match on court two between Nicaise Muamba/Rafael Marques Da Silva (Liberty) and Chikaya Soto/Bora Sengul (Penn State) went unfinished with the Flames team ahead 6-5. Muamba and Marques Da Silva had trailed 5-3 in that contest before winning the next three games.
• With only four competition courts available, Liberty got off to a strong start in singles with victories at No. 3, No. 2 and No. 1 singles in that order to go ahead 3-2. Penn State’s only win among the first four matches came from Loren Byers versus Worst in three sets, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2, snapping Worst’s four-match winning streak.
• At No. 3 singles, Marques Da Silva provided the Flames their first point of the day, besting Sengul 6-4, 6-1. In the No. 2 singles contest, Liberty’s Wilson topped Sato 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2.
• Muamba put the Flames up for the first time, 3-2, with a 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-3 result over Bhatnagar.
• Penn State’s Sam Bossem prevailed 6-3, 6-4 over Liberty’s Thando Longwe-Smit at No. 6 singles, evening the match at 3-3.
• In the deciding No. 5 singles match, Eala trailed 4-3 in the third set with Thomas-Smith before taking the final three games and the match.
• Friday’s match lasted four hours and 41 minutes, the Flames’ longest of the season.
• Liberty’s last three matches have been decided by one point, all 4-3 outcomes. The Flames are 1-2 in those matches. Liberty bested Elon 4-3 on the road, last Friday.
Next Up
• Liberty will return home to face Old Dominion (3-3), Feb. 20. First serve is noon at the Liberty Indoor Tennis Center.
• The Flames and Monarchs split a pair of matches during the 2021 campaign. Liberty topped ODU 4-3 at home and fell 6-1 to the Monarchs on the road. ODU holds the all-time series edge, 11-1.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
3,4,2,1,6,5