Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Match 1 Box Score (PDF)
Match 2  Box Score (PDF)

SUMTER, S.C. – The Citadel men's tennis team split a pair of non-conference, neutral-site matches Saturday. The Bulldogs started the afternoon off with an 8-1 win over Belmont Abbey before falling 7-2 to Flagler.

"My personal goal as the coach is for us to get to complete racing speed and get the team playing up to its potential. We have had moments of excellence but we have not yet come together," said head coach Chuck Kriese. "Today helped quite a lot. The Belmont Abbey match was a very good start as they have a very good team, and from start to finish, we played excellent. Flagler is an excellent team with a great program. The match was a thriller from start to finish. We had a great chance in the doubles but could not close out. Nonetheless, the guys battled to the end and it was worth every ball hit for the level that we played out."

Match 1: The Citadel 8, Belmont Abbey 1
The Citadel (7-16) faced the Crusaders of BAC for the second time this season, claiming all but the No. 1 singles point. Noah Nawabi and Gavin Stewart started the afternoon off with an 8-1 win over Austin Schepel and Jacob Andress at No. 1 doubles. Matthew Henson and Will Graham claimed the No. 2 doubles point 8-2 over James Delaney and Ryan James. Roy Hobson and Jack Pyritz rounded out the doubles portion of the match with an 8-1 win over Chip Moore and Emmanuel Naranjo.

In singles action, George Barfoot claimed the Crusaders' lone point with a 7-6 (1-0), 6-3 win over Henson at No. 1. At No. 2 singles, Nawabi defeated Carlos Nolasco 6-3, 6-2 and Stewart defeated James 6-3, 6-0 at No. 3. Pyritz earned a 6-0, 6-0 win over Naranjo at No. 4 singles. Hobson and Graham rounded out the singles play in the first match with wins at No. 5 and No. 6. Hobson bested Moore 6-0, 6-2 while Graham defeated Joseph Horne 6-3, 6-1.

Match 2: Flagler 7, The Citadel 2
The day's second match pitted The Citadel against a very strong and experienced Flagler squad. The Saints took all three doubles points with Felipe Carvalho and Daniel Arrien defeating Nawabi and Stewart 8-4 at No. 1 doubles. Alexander Chepik and Luca Bolla claimed a 9-8 victory at No. 2 doubles over Henson and Graham and Willy Hasselberg and Rasmus Jonsson defeated Hobson and Pyritz 8-4 in No. 3 doubles action.

In singles action, Henson and Hobson claimed wins for the Bulldogs at No. 1 and No. 5. Henson defeated Hasselberg 4-6, 7-6, 1-0 while Hobson bested Arrien in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2.

Konstantin Dustmann claimed the No. 2 singles points 2-6, 7-6, 6-1 over Nawabi with Felipe Carvalho winning at No. 3 7-5, 6-3 over Stewart. Jonsson defeated Pyritz 6-4, 6-1 at No. 4 singles and Hermann Gertmann rounded things out with a 7-5, 4-6, 6-0 win over Graham at No. 6 singles.

UP NEXT
The Citadel will return to Charleston this week for a midweek, Southern Conference showdown with Samford on Wednesday, March 14. The battle of the Bulldogs will begin at 1:30 p.m. at the Earle Tennis Center.

For more information and score updates on The Citadel men's tennis team, follow @CitadelOlympic on Twitter or visit CitadelSports.com.