Sunday, March 30
Lynchburg, Va.
1:00 PM ET
Liberty University
2
vs
5
No. 24 USF
Flames Fall to No. 24 South Florida 5-2 in Sunday Afternoon Matchup
3/30/2025 6:54:00 PM | Men's Tennis
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty Flames men's tennis team (7-11) lost at home on a Sunday afternoon matchup to No. 24 South Florida (18-3) 5-2 at the Cook Tennis Center. Liberty earned a 1-1 weekend after topping No. 70 FAU 5-2 on Friday.
The Bulls demonstrated a strong showing in doubles, dropping a combined five games across all three courts. South Florida was victorious on courts one and two, clinching the match in the top slot as Hugo Car and Ettore Danesi defeated Liberty's No. 53 pair of Joaquim Almeida and Siwanat Auytayakul 6-2.
Liberty started singles off strong winning the first set on courts four and five, but the Bulls responded with first set wins on all other courts. South Florida dominated the top of the lineup grabbing victories on all top three singles courts. The Bulls secured the match-clinching point on court one after Agustin Cuellar defeated Almeida 6-3, 6-3.
Following the match being clinched, the bottom of the lineup saw all matches go to a deciding third set. Liberty's Rodrigo Santiago Arraez came out on top on court four, defeating Danesi 6-2, 3-6, 7-5. The Toledo, Spain native has 10 singles wins this spring, the most by any Flame this year.
Chase Robinson secured a tight victory, going to a third set tiebreaker. Fueled by the home crowd and his teammates on the sidelines, the redshirt sophomore pushed through for a 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (4) triumph.
#24 South Florida 5, Liberty 2
Singles Competition
1. Agustin Cuellar (USFM) def. Joaquim Almeida (LIBERTYM) 6-3, 6-3
2. Elijah Cham (USFM) def. Carl Roothman (LIBERTYM) 6-3, 6-4
3. Gughi Verdese (USFM) def. Siwanat Auytayakul (LIBERTYM) 6-2, 6-2
4. R Santiago Arraez (LIBERTYM) def. Ettore Danesi (USFM) 6-2, 3-6, 7-5
5. Chase Robinson (LIBERTYM) def. Stepan Mruzek (USFM) 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4)
6. Toto Llanes (USFM) def. Matija Samardzic (LIBERTYM) 6-4, 6-7, 1-0 (10-6)
Doubles Competition
1. Hugo Car/Ettore Danesi (USFM) def. Joaquim Almeida/Siwanat Auytayakul (LIBERTYM) 6-2
2. Ben Hudson/Toto Llanes (USFM) def. Chase Robinson/Ernst Gouws (LIBERTYM) 6-1
3. Matija Samardzic/R Santiago Arraez (LIBERTYM) vs. Agustin Cuellar/Stepan Mruzek (USFM) 2-5, unfinished
South Florida 18-3; National ranking #24
Liberty 7-11
Order of Finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (3,2,1,4,6,5)
Flames News & Notes
Up Next
Liberty (7-11) prepares for a set of two road matches, facing UNCW (7-7) on Tuesday and battling Tulane (5-13) on Friday. Wednesday's match is set for 2 p.m. ET from the UNCW Tennis Courts in Wilmington, N.C. Friday's match is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET from City Park Tennis Center in New Orleans, La.
The Bulls demonstrated a strong showing in doubles, dropping a combined five games across all three courts. South Florida was victorious on courts one and two, clinching the match in the top slot as Hugo Car and Ettore Danesi defeated Liberty's No. 53 pair of Joaquim Almeida and Siwanat Auytayakul 6-2.
Liberty started singles off strong winning the first set on courts four and five, but the Bulls responded with first set wins on all other courts. South Florida dominated the top of the lineup grabbing victories on all top three singles courts. The Bulls secured the match-clinching point on court one after Agustin Cuellar defeated Almeida 6-3, 6-3.
Following the match being clinched, the bottom of the lineup saw all matches go to a deciding third set. Liberty's Rodrigo Santiago Arraez came out on top on court four, defeating Danesi 6-2, 3-6, 7-5. The Toledo, Spain native has 10 singles wins this spring, the most by any Flame this year.
Chase Robinson secured a tight victory, going to a third set tiebreaker. Fueled by the home crowd and his teammates on the sidelines, the redshirt sophomore pushed through for a 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (4) triumph.
#24 South Florida 5, Liberty 2
Singles Competition
1. Agustin Cuellar (USFM) def. Joaquim Almeida (LIBERTYM) 6-3, 6-3
2. Elijah Cham (USFM) def. Carl Roothman (LIBERTYM) 6-3, 6-4
3. Gughi Verdese (USFM) def. Siwanat Auytayakul (LIBERTYM) 6-2, 6-2
4. R Santiago Arraez (LIBERTYM) def. Ettore Danesi (USFM) 6-2, 3-6, 7-5
5. Chase Robinson (LIBERTYM) def. Stepan Mruzek (USFM) 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4)
6. Toto Llanes (USFM) def. Matija Samardzic (LIBERTYM) 6-4, 6-7, 1-0 (10-6)
Doubles Competition
1. Hugo Car/Ettore Danesi (USFM) def. Joaquim Almeida/Siwanat Auytayakul (LIBERTYM) 6-2
2. Ben Hudson/Toto Llanes (USFM) def. Chase Robinson/Ernst Gouws (LIBERTYM) 6-1
3. Matija Samardzic/R Santiago Arraez (LIBERTYM) vs. Agustin Cuellar/Stepan Mruzek (USFM) 2-5, unfinished
South Florida 18-3; National ranking #24
Liberty 7-11
Order of Finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (3,2,1,4,6,5)
Flames News & Notes
- The Flames fall to 3-4 at home this season.
- Arraez improves to 6-2 in his past 10 singles matches.The sophomore currently owns a three-match singles winning streak.
Up Next
Liberty (7-11) prepares for a set of two road matches, facing UNCW (7-7) on Tuesday and battling Tulane (5-13) on Friday. Wednesday's match is set for 2 p.m. ET from the UNCW Tennis Courts in Wilmington, N.C. Friday's match is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET from City Park Tennis Center in New Orleans, La.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
12
Agustin Cuellar/ Stepan Mruzek [USFM]
50
2UF
Order of Finish:
2,1
#1 Singles Match
12
Agustin Cuellar / 0 [USFM]
66
33
#2 Singles Match
12
Elijah Cham / 0 [USFM]
66
34
#3 Singles Match
12
Gughi Verdese / 0 [USFM]
66
22
#4 Singles Match
123
Ettore Danesi / 0 [USFM]
265
637
#5 Singles Match
123
Stepan Mruzek / 0 [USFM]
166
647
#6 Singles Match
123
Toto Llanes / 0 [USFM]
661
470
Order of Finish:
3,2,1,4,6,5
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
Coach Connell Talks About The Win Over KSU
Thursday, April 17
Joaquim Almeida Talks About The Upcoming CUSA Tournament
Tuesday, April 15
Daniella O'Neill Talks About The Upcoming CUSA Tournament
Tuesday, April 15
Joaquim Almeida: Finding the Lord and Liberty
Friday, April 11