CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The University of South Alabama men’s tennis team improved their record to 5-5 when they defeated the defending Sun Belt Conference champions Middle Tennessee 4-2 on the final day of play at the HEB Classic Tournament of Champions in Corpus Christi, Texas.

“It was a long tournament and we are very happy to come back with two wins,” USA head coach Nick Brochu said. “We had a very long day yesterday with two matches over four hours; our guys were very tired, but we fought extremely hard.”

The day began with singles competition where the Jaguars picked up wins on the No. 2, No. 3, No. 5 and No. 6 courts. Junior Lucas Viel defeated the Blue Raiders’ Victor Melo 0-6, 7-5, 7-5 at the No. 2 flight. At No. 3 singles freshman Alexandre Bernard downed Shaun Waters in straight sets 6-1, 6-4. Hanno Bartsch added another Jaguar point by defeating Alex McCann 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 at the No. 5 spot. At No. 6 sophomore Dauw Kruger dominated MTSU’s Matthew Langley in straight sets 6-4, 6-2.

"We had a slow start on some courts, but we picked it up and came up big, especially on courts two and five. Lucas fought extreme fatigue to win 7-5 in the third set and give us a chance to close the match at No. 5 singles. Hanno showed a lot of focus, closing the match like a champ. Alex and Dauw did an excellent job taking care of their matches quickly and giving us the early lead.”

Because the match had already been decided no doubles matches were played.

South Alabama will return to Mobile, Ala. March 10 to face Austin Peay at 2 p.m. at the Bruce David Lubel Memorial Courts.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251)461-1USA(1872).

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