Final Results
Updated Samford Stats
SoCon Tournament Central
ELON, N.C. – The Samford University men's tennis team advanced to the semifinal round of the 2013 Southern Conference Tournament Friday as the second-seeded Bulldogs posted a 4-1 triumph over the seventh-seeded Davidson Wildcats in a hard-fought quarterfinal matchup held at the Burlington Tennis Center.
With Friday's victory,
Samford (13-9) advanced to the semifinal round of play at the SoCon Tournament where the Bulldogs will square off against the third-seeded College of Charleston Cougars at 1 p.m. (CDT) at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center on the campus of Elon University.
Due to a threat of inclement weather, the teams competed in singles play first and Samford received critical victories from
Fares Kilani,
Garrison Laduca,
Alex Sajonz and
Elliot Barnwell to record the 4-1 win. With their triumph, the Bulldogs extended their winning streak to two-consecutive matches. Samford has also been victorious in six of its last eight outings.
Davidson (12-9) tallied its lone win in singles play as Connor Evins rallied for a 0-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory over the Bulldogs'
Austin Akers on court No. 5.
Samford opened Friday's match with three straight singles wins from Kilani, Laduca and Sajona. Kilani, the Bulldogs' All-SoCon performer from Tunis, Tunisia, cruised to a 6-1, 6-2 victory on court No. 3, while Laduca earned a dominant 6-2, 6-0 triumph in the No. 6 singles contest.
Sajonz, Samford's streaky native of Kungsbacka, Sweden, gave the Bulldogs a 3-0 lead as he earned his eighth-consecutive victory by topping Davidson's Robert Lightbourn, 6-1, 7-6(7) on court No. 4. Sajonz has proven to be one of Samford's top singles players this season and improved his dual-match record to 14-8 this year.
After the Wildcats' Evins made the score 3-1, the Bulldogs' Barnwell clinched his team's 4-1 victory by earning a 2-6, 6-0, 7-6(8) triumph over Davidson's Nick Kunz on court No. 2. With his win, Samford's gritty, hard-nosed native of Mancetter, United Kingdom, improved his singles record on the season to 14-8.
With Friday's win, the Bulldogs advanced to the semifinal round of play at the 2013 SoCon Tournament and will square off against the third-seeded College of Charleston Cougars at 1 p.m. (CDT) at the Jimmy Powell Tennis Center on the campus of Elon University.
Final Results
Updated Samford Stats
SoCon Tournament Central
