Wednesday, March 20
Lynchburg, Va.
3:00 PM ET
Liberty University
7
vs
0
Richmond
No. 57 Flames Rout Richmond with 7-0 Sweep
3/20/2024 7:44:00 PM | Men's Tennis
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The No. 57 Liberty men's tennis team took care of business against visiting Richmond, stomping the Spiders 7-0 on Wednesday. The match was held at the Liberty Tennis Complex.
Liberty (12-5) jumped ahead of Richmond (9-4) with a dominant doubles display with two swift victories on courts three and two. The Flames carried their success into the singles round grabbing three singles triumphs in the No. 6, 3 and 4 singles matches before the two-hour mark of the match was reached. Liberty added three more singles wins including two third set tiebreakers to secure Liberty's fifth sweep of the season.
Rafael Marques Da Silva, honored as the Conference USA Men's Tennis Athlete of the Week hours before the match, handled his opponent, Daniel Kliebhan, 6-4, 6-2 in the No. 1 singles match.
The Flames improve to 8-1 at home this season as they secure their third consecutive victory. Liberty improves its record against Richmond to 6-11 all-time.
Thoughts from Head Coach Derek Schwandt
"It was an honor to compete at home today for Liberty. The team competed today. Joy. Smart Work. Team."
#57 Liberty 7, Richmond 0
Singles Competition
1. R Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) def. Daniel Kliebhan (RICH) 6-4, 6-2
2. Luis Felipe Miguel (LIBERTYM) def. Paxton Pritchard (RICH) 7-6, 4-6, 1-0 (10-3)
3. Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) def. Davis Wiley (RICH) 6-3, 6-3
4. Thando Longwe-Smit (LIBERTYM) def. Sebastian Miano (RICH) 3-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-7)
5. R Santiago Arraez (LIBERTYM) def. Dylan Atkinson (RICH) 6-2, 6-4
6. Chase Robinson (LIBERTYM) def. Mark Taranov (RICH) 6-1, 6-0
Doubles Competition
1. R Marques Da Silva/Thando Longwe-Smit (LIBERTYM) vs. Daniel Kliebhan/Nick Roddy (RICH) 5-2, unfinished
2. Matija Samardzic/Luis Felipe Miguel (LIBERTYM) def. Cole Brashear/Davis Wiley (RICH) 6-3
3. Deji Thomas-Smith/R Hadzimehmedovic (LIBERTYM) def. Sebastian Miano/Paxton Pritchard (RICH) 6-2
Match Notes:
Richmond 9-4
Liberty 12-5; National ranking #57
Order of Finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (6,3,5,1,4,2)
Official: Harrison Harrison T-2:18
Doubles
Singles
Up Next
Liberty (12-5) returns home this weekend, taking on No. 68 William & Mary (9-7) on Saturday. First serve is set for 3 p.m. at the Liberty Tennis Complex.
Liberty (12-5) jumped ahead of Richmond (9-4) with a dominant doubles display with two swift victories on courts three and two. The Flames carried their success into the singles round grabbing three singles triumphs in the No. 6, 3 and 4 singles matches before the two-hour mark of the match was reached. Liberty added three more singles wins including two third set tiebreakers to secure Liberty's fifth sweep of the season.
Rafael Marques Da Silva, honored as the Conference USA Men's Tennis Athlete of the Week hours before the match, handled his opponent, Daniel Kliebhan, 6-4, 6-2 in the No. 1 singles match.
The Flames improve to 8-1 at home this season as they secure their third consecutive victory. Liberty improves its record against Richmond to 6-11 all-time.
Thoughts from Head Coach Derek Schwandt
"It was an honor to compete at home today for Liberty. The team competed today. Joy. Smart Work. Team."
#57 Liberty 7, Richmond 0
Singles Competition
1. R Marques Da Silva (LIBERTYM) def. Daniel Kliebhan (RICH) 6-4, 6-2
2. Luis Felipe Miguel (LIBERTYM) def. Paxton Pritchard (RICH) 7-6, 4-6, 1-0 (10-3)
3. Deji Thomas-Smith (LIBERTYM) def. Davis Wiley (RICH) 6-3, 6-3
4. Thando Longwe-Smit (LIBERTYM) def. Sebastian Miano (RICH) 3-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-7)
5. R Santiago Arraez (LIBERTYM) def. Dylan Atkinson (RICH) 6-2, 6-4
6. Chase Robinson (LIBERTYM) def. Mark Taranov (RICH) 6-1, 6-0
Doubles Competition
1. R Marques Da Silva/Thando Longwe-Smit (LIBERTYM) vs. Daniel Kliebhan/Nick Roddy (RICH) 5-2, unfinished
2. Matija Samardzic/Luis Felipe Miguel (LIBERTYM) def. Cole Brashear/Davis Wiley (RICH) 6-3
3. Deji Thomas-Smith/R Hadzimehmedovic (LIBERTYM) def. Sebastian Miano/Paxton Pritchard (RICH) 6-2
Match Notes:
Richmond 9-4
Liberty 12-5; National ranking #57
Order of Finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (6,3,5,1,4,2)
Official: Harrison Harrison T-2:18
Doubles
- The Flames sprinted ahead with a 6-2 win by Deji Thomas-Smith and Romeo Hadzimehmedovic (2-3) over Sebastian Miano and Paxton Pritchard on court three.
- Matija Samardzic and Luis Felipe Miguel (11-3) clinched the doubles point in the No. 2 doubles match with a 6-3 victory topping Cole Brashear and Davis Wiley.
- On court one, Liberty's Rafael Marques Da Silva and Thando Longwe-Smit led Daniel Kliebhan and Nick Roddy 5-2 at the time the doubles point was won.
Singles
- Chase Robinson (8-2) blazed his way past Mark Taranov on court six with a 6-1, 6-0 victory.
- In the No. 3 singles match, Thomas-Smith (10-4) handled Wiley 6-3, 6-3 to grab the Flames a 3-0 lead.
- Continuing his stellar freshman campaign, Rodrigo Santiago Arraez improved to 10-0 in singles and clinched the match-winning fourth point with a 6-2, 6-4 triumph over Dylan Atkinson.
- Liberty continued to add on with a 6-4, 6-2 Marques Da Silva (9-4) victory over Kliebhan
- After dropping the first set, Longwe-Smit battled back on court four with a commanding second set, besting Miano in a third set tiebreaker 3-6, 6-4, 1-0 (7).
- In the most competitive match of the day in the No. 2 singles match, Miguel managed to edge Pritchard 7-6 (3), 4-6, 1-0 (3) to seal the 7-0 sweep for Liberty.
Up Next
Liberty (12-5) returns home this weekend, taking on No. 68 William & Mary (9-7) on Saturday. First serve is set for 3 p.m. at the Liberty Tennis Complex.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,2
#1 Singles Match
12
Daniel Kliebhan / 0 [RICH]
42
66
#2 Singles Match
123
Paxton Pritchard / 0 [RICH]
660
741
#3 Singles Match
12
Davis Wiley / 0 [RICH]
33
66
#4 Singles Match
123
Sebastian Miano / 0 [RICH]
640
361
#5 Singles Match
12
Dylan Atkinson / 0 [RICH]
24
66
#6 Singles Match
12
Mark Taranov / 0 [RICH]
10
66
Order of Finish:
6,3,5,1,4,2
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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