MURFEESBORO, Tenn. – The University of South Alabama No. 47 men's tennis team (18-5) snapped a two-game skid by defeating Middle Tennessee (7-12) 4-0 Friday afternoon at the Adams Tennis Complex.
 
"It may not have been the cleanest tennis, but we showed a lot of character today," said USA head coach Nick Brochu. "There were lots of breaks and break backs today, and it was a very up and down match. But we stayed focused and kept cheering each other up."
 
In doubles, the Jags rallied after a loss on court No. 1 to win the point. Senior Juan Cruz Soria (San Juan, Argentina) and freshman Loic Cloes (Remicourt, Belgium) fell to Tom Moonen and Gonzalo Morell 6-1 at No. 1. On court No. 3 junior Oliver Gingras (Quebec City, Quebec, Canada) and senior Pierre Noyon (Oye-Plage, France) downed Nicolas Buitrago and Max Rauch 6-2. Senior Tuki Jacobs (Windhoek, Namibia) and sophomore Lucas Gonzalez (Chateauroux, France) secured the doubles point with a 7-6 victory over Gian Issa and Miguel Nigre at No. 2.
 
"It feels great to see our No. 2 and 3 in doubles step up and win a huge doubles point after our No. 1 team had a bad day," Brochu said. "The doubles point gave us a big momentum going into singles."
 
Gonzalez opened singles by defeating Rauch 6-0, 6-2 at No. 6, and Cloes followed with a 6-3, 6-3 win against Issa on court No. 4 to put the Jaguars up 3-0. No. 111 Soria clinched the victory for USA by besting Moonen 6-3, 6-4 at No. 1.
 
"We came up big on big points," said Brochu. "We had a good week of practice and I think we are playing better now."
 
The Jags return to action Saturday at 10 a.m. to square off against University of Alabama-Birmingham.
 
Join the Baseline Club, the tennis-specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Baseline Club go directly to support the South Alabama men's and women's tennis programs. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/baselineclub
 
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).