FRIDAY: Ole Miss 4, Arkansas 2
The Rebel Netters got their third Southeastern Conference win of the season Friday by beating Arkansas 4-2 at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center at Ole Miss.
The Rebels (5-8, 3-4 SEC) once again dropped the overall doubles point to start the match.
Senior Johan Backstrom and sophomore Joe Rogers won 8-2 at No. 3 doubles, but the tandem of junior Nik Scholtz and freshman Ricardo Jorge and the pair of sophomore Stefan Lindmark and junior William Kallberg both fell to their opponents, and the Rebels started the match with a point disadvantage for the 10th time this year.
The Rebels then rebounded from the doubles play and won the first four sets in singles to win the match. Freshman Vinod Gowda won the first match 6-3, 6-0 over Christian Lee. Scholtz then continued his hot streak in singles by defeating Mike Nott 7-5, 6-1. Jorge fought back from dropping the first set to win his match. Kallberg fought hard, but retired from his match due to an ankle injury. With the match at a 3-2 Rebel lead, Lindmark clinched the victory with a 7-5, 7-5 win over Hall Fess.
“I started off really bad. I feel like I could have played much better,” Lindmark said. “Down 4-1, I started to get some momentum and kept fighting. I knew he was up and down and that if I stayed with him (I could get the win.) I am happy I could finish strong.”
Head coach Billy Chadwick said he was proud of the way his players fought, especially after playing from behind in some matches.
“When you have one point to get, and two guys going hard for it, and you’re playing hard, that’s good,” he said.
Sunday: LSU 4, Ole Miss 1
Sophomore Nik Scholtz picked up his eighth consecutive singles win yesterday, but the Rebel Netters could not complete the weekend sweep as they fell to Southeastern Conference foe LSU 4-1 at home.
LSU (10-9, 1-6 SEC) entered the match looking to pick up its first SEC win of the season. LSU took the doubles point and picked wins at No. 2, 3 and 4 singles to clinch the match.
“It was disappointing because I thought we played a really good match on Friday,” head coach Billy Chadwick said. “We knew LSU had been playing everybody close and that they were going to beat someone at some point in time. Unfortunately, it was us today.”
Scholtz defeated Chris Simpson 6-3, 6-3 and currently holds a 4-0 record in the SEC. Scholtz currently ranks at No. 44 nationally in singles, but the new ITA ratings will be released Tuesday, and he is expected to go up.
Junior William Kallberg played through an ankle injury he suffered Friday, but he could not pull out a win. Senior Johan Backstrom and sophomore Stefan Lindmark could not follow up from their great performances Friday and fell in their singles matches Sunday, losses which ultimately gave LSU the win.
“We have to work on our consistency for sure,” Chadwick said. “We need to be able to be at our very best every time that we walk on the court. Today, for whatever reason, LSU was just a little sharper.”
The Rebel Netters will travel to Jackson to play Jackson State in a three-match series Tuesday.
— Dylan Rubino
djrubino@go.olemiss.edu
