Box Score
Samford StatsBIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Samford University men's tennis team closed out its 2015 regular season in style Saturday as the Bulldogs cruised to a 7-0 triumph over The Citadel Bulldogs in a Southern Conference matchup held at the Samford Tennis Center.
"This was a great way to finish the regular season today," said Samford head coach
Rahim Esmail. "We took care of business. Now, it's time to get ready for the conference tournament.
Austin Heinz did a great job in the doubles today. He played some very convincing tennis and showed why our depth is something that makes us a very competitive team."
With Saturday's victory,
Samford (9-10, 3-4 SoCon) closed out its 2015 regular season with a four-match home winning streak and with a 6-3 record when playing at the Samford Tennis Center.
The Bulldogs opened their meeting with
The Citadel (2-29, 0-7 SoCon) by winning the doubles point and taking an early 1-0 advantage.
On court No. 1, the Cadets' tandem of Artemie Amari and Peter Bleach earned a slight 8-7 victory, but then Samford swept the final two doubles matches on courts No. 2 and No. 3. The Bulldogs' combination of
Austin Akers and
Austin Heinz breezed to an 8-2 triumph in the No. 2 doubles contest, while
Fares Kilani and
Justin Ghavami rolled to an 8-3 on court No. 3.
Samford's most successful doubles position has been the No. 3 matchup this season. The Bulldogs own a 22-27 overall record in dual-match play, while they are 10-7 on court No. 3.
In singles play Saturday, Samford proved to be triumphant in straight sets on five of the six courts. The lone three-set contest occurred on court No. 4 where Ghavami held off the Cadets' Pride, 7-5, 1-6, 6-3. With his win, true freshman Ghavami improved to 11-7 in dual-match play this spring.
The Citadel closed out its regular-season schedule with a 23-match losing streak. The Cadets' last victory occurred Feb. 6, in a 5-2 neutral-site win over Murray State held at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. On Jan. 17, The Citadel also earned a 7-0 win against Spartanburg Methodist.
The Samford University men's tennis team will next be in action April 24-26, as the Bulldogs head to Greenville, South Carolina, for the 2015 SoCon Tournament being co-hosted by Furman University and Wofford University. Seeding, start times and matchups have yet to be determined and will be released at a later date.
Box Score
Samford Stats
