Hog Netters Edged by South Carolina 4-3

COLUMBIA, S.C. Arkansas got yet another strong doubles performance Sunday afternoon, but the Razorbacks could not hang on in singles, losing, 4-3, to No. 55 South Carolina at the Sam Daniel Tennis Complex in Columbia, S.C.

The Razorbacks (7-15, 0-6 SEC) won the doubles point for the fourth time in six matches and for the eighth time this season. The Hogs are now 4-4 when opening the match with the 1-0 advantage.

Blake Strode and Colin Mascall continued to pace the solid doubles play for the Razorbacks. The 27th-ranked duo rolled to a, 8-1, win over Peter Campos and Yevgeny Supeko at No. 1. Strode and Mascall are now 17-5 on the year and 13-4 in dual matches.

The two other doubles matches ended in tiebreakers. The Razorbacks took the match on court three where the pair of freshmen Gabriel Mattos and Bradwin Williams outlasted South Carolina’s Ivan Cressoni and David Wolff, 9-8(1). The Gamecocks (11-7, 2-4 SEC) took the match on court two after the doubles point had been decided.

Arkansas stormed out of the gates in singles, as Strode cruised to a, 6-1, 6-0, win over Pedro Rodrigues at No. 1. Strode, ranked 95th nationally in singles, improves to 21-10 on the season and 12-7 in dual matches.

Trailing 2-0, South Carolina would rally in the middle of the lineup, as the Gamecocks reeled off wins on courts five, three, two and four to clinch the dual match.

Razorback freshman Jorge Villanueva rounded out the scoring with his, 6-3, 3-6, 1-0(9), victory over Spencer Feldman at No. 6. The win is the La Paz, Bolivia native’s 11th of the year.

Arkansas is back in action Friday, when it returns to Fayetteville to face Mississippi St. The Razorbacks and Bulldogs will meet at 1:30 p.m. at the UA Outdoor Tennis Complex in Fayetteville.

#55 South Carolina 4, Arkansas 3

March 25, 2007

Sam Daniel Tennis Complex, Columbia, S.C.

Singles:1. #95 Blake Strode (ARK) def. Pedro Rodrigues (SC), 6-1, 6-02. #117 Yevgeny Supeko (SC) def. Colin Mascall (ARK), 6-3, 7-53. Peter Campos (SC) def. Andrei Nicoara (ARK), 6-3, 6-14. Ivan Cressoni (SC) ef. Dmitry Lebedev (ARK), 6-4, 6-45. David Wolff (SC) def. Dmitry Vlaskin (ARK), 6-1, 6-16. Jorge Villanueva (ARK) def. Spencer Feldman (SC), 6-3, 3-6, 1-0(9)

Order of Finish: 1, 5, 3, 2, 4*, 6

Doubles:

1. #27 Strode/Mascall (ARK) def. Campos/Supeko (SC), 8-1

2. Stoddard/Veeder (SC) def. Villanueva/Vlaskin (ARK), 9-8

3. Gabriel Mattos/Bradwin Williams (ARK) def. Cressoni/Wolff (SC), 9-8(1)

Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2