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Liberty University
Old Dominion
No. 68 Liberty Earns Fourth Ranked Win of Spring, Downs No. 62 ODU 4-2
3/29/2023 7:32:03 PM | Men's Tennis
No. 68 Liberty earned its fourth ranked win of the spring, downing No. 62 Old Dominion 4-2 in a road match on Wednesday afternoon at the Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center.
The Flames bolster their record to 12-8 and run their winning streak to six matches. Liberty has not lost since March 12. Meanwhile, the Monarchs slip to 11-9 on the year. The Flames have won three of the last four matches against ODU, dating back to the spring 2021 campaign.
Liberty’s ranked wins in 2023 include: No. 62 Old Dominion (road, today), No. 67 Michigan State (neutral, March 11), No. 70 Charlotte (home, March 4) and No. 46 Penn State (home, Feb. 24). This is the Flames’ first-ever win at ODU.
Liberty won the match despite dropping the doubles point. The Flames rebounded to take four of the five completed singles contests.
Thoughts From Head Coach Derek Schwandt
“We are excited to get back to work and build on this. It will be important for us to stay humble and hungry and continue to focus on the process.”
#68 Liberty 4, #62 Old Dominion 2
Singles Competition
- Younes Lalami (ODU-M) vs. Josh Wilson (LIBERTYM) 5-7, 6-2, 2-4, unfinished
- Francois Le Tallec (ODU-M) def. R. Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) 6-4, 6-3
- Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) def. Codie van Schalkwyk (ODU-M) 6-1, 6-2
- Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) def. CosmeRollandDeRavel (ODU-M) 6-2, 7-6 (8-6)
- Beau Pelletier (LIBERTYM) def. Jakob Cadonau (ODU-M) 6-3, 6-2
- Luis Felipe Miguel (LIBERTYM) def. Luca Maldoner (ODU-M) 6-2, 2-6, 6-3
Doubles Competition
- Josh Wilson/Christiaan Worst (LIBERTYM) def. #68 Younes Lalami/Brandon Perez (ODU-M) 6-0
- Jakob Cadonau/Luca Maldoner (ODU-M) def. Deji Thomas-Smith/Luis Felipe Miguel (LIBERTYM) 6-1
- Francois Le Tallec/Cosme Rolland De Ravel (ODU-M) def. R. Marques Da Silva/Beau Pelletier (LIBERTYM) 6-2
Liberty 12-8; National ranking #68
Old Dominion 11-9; National ranking #62
Order of Finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (3,2,5,6,4)
T-2:45
How It Happened
• The Flames’ Josh Wilson and Christiaan Worst earned their third ranked singles win of the season, a dominant 6-0 effort over the Monarchs’ No. 68 Younes Lalami and Brandon Perez. Wilson and Worst improve to 8-7 this spring and 18-11 overall as doubles partners during the 2022-23 campaign.
• Despite Wilson and Worst’s strong start, Liberty dropped the doubles point to fall into an early 1-0 hole. ODU’s No. 2 and No. 3 pairings earned convincing victories themselves. The No. 2 duo, Jakob Cadanou and Luca Maldoner, snapped Deji Thomas-Smith and Luis Felipe Miguel’s nine-match winning streak with a 6-2 victory. The Monarchs’ Francois Le Tallec and Cosme Rolland De Ravel (No. 3 doubles) took down Rafael Marques Da Silva and Beau Pelletier 6-2 to secure a 1-0 lead for the hosts.
• After a doubles victory, Liberty’s Worst knotted the match at 1-all with his 6-1, 6-2 triumph over Codie van Schalkwyk at No. 3 singles. The Flames senior has now won five straight singles contests.
• Le Tallec put ODU back ahead 2-1 with his 6-4, 6-3 win against ASUN Player of the Week Marques Da Silva on court two. Less than 10 minutes later, the Flames’ Pelletier evened the score back at 2-2 with a straight-sets win (6-3, 6-2) against Cadonau at No. 4 singles.
• Liberty doubles partners Miguel and Thomas-Smith proved to be the difference with the match hanging in the balance. Miguel traded sets with Maldoner at No. 6 singles before emerging with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 triumph for a 3-2 Liberty lead.
• Thomas-Smith (No. 4 singles) won set one by a 6-2 score versus Rolland De Ravel but trailed throughout much of the second set. Eventually, the Liberty junior forced a tiebreaker, which he won 8-6 to claim the match, 6-2, 7-6 (6).
• The Flames bolster their record to 4-4 against ranked competition.
• Liberty is 4-3 in road matches this season.
• Despite ODU’s overall series record (11-3) versus Liberty, it has been the Flames who have been successful against the Monarchs in recent years by winning three of the last four contests between the two programs.
Next Up
• No. 68 Liberty (12-8, 6-0 ASUN) will head to Florida for its next match, taking on Stetson (10-8, 0-4 ASUN) on April 6. First serve is 3 p.m. at the Mandy Stoll Tennis Center in DeLand, Fla.
• The Flames are 2-1 all-time versus the Hatters, including a 2-0 mark since joining the ASUN. Liberty topped Stetson 6-1 last year on Senior Day (April 16, 2021) in what was the Flames’ league regular season finale.
Main Photo at Top of Story: Deji Thomas-Smith
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,2,3
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
3,2,5,6,4