BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Reigning Big South Player of the Week Maximillian Scholl led a Gardner-Webb rotation that split singles play after taking the doubles point from the Longwood men's tennis team, securing a 4-3 Big South Conference victory Saturday afternoon.
After going 2-0 in singles play the week prior to earn his Big South honor, the sophomore ace Scholl took a 6-3, 6-4 straight-set win over Longwood senior ace
Florian Uffer, and worked a 6-1 win at court two with partner Brenzo Plentz in doubles play to lead the Runnin' Bulldogs.
In singles play, the Runnin' Bulldogs were able to get the split they needed to secure the conference win, taking straight set wins at courts one and three, while Breno Plentz grinded out a third set tiebreak 6-2, 5-7, 7-6 (10-8) over
Arthur Bardellotto at court four.
The Lancers have found themselves on the wrong end of back-to-back 4-3 decisions to George Mason and Gardner-Webb, with a 7-0 home win over Hampden-Sydney sandwiched in between after starting the road slate 5-1 with wins at Big South powers Liberty and Winthrop.
The loss was the fourth 4-3 decision in a Big South match for the Lancers in 2017, who had been 3-0 in such score lines heading into Saturday's action.
Longwood's tandem of
Florian Uffer and
Amadeo Blasco extended their doubles win streak to four-straight with a 7-6 tiebreak win at court one, but it wasn't enough as Gardner-Webb took courts two and three for the early 1-0 lead.
Blasco's three-set 6-2, 3-6, 7-5 triumph at court two was his fifth win in a row, his second such streak of the season. Blasco leads the team in singles wins with a 13-1 record and sits a perfect 8-0 at the second seed. He's also on pace to grab the most wins in Longwood's Division I-era, dating back to the 2007-08 season, needing four wins over his next five to close out the regular season.
Fellow newcomers
Noah Petralia and
Jorge Gomis picked up their second wins in as many matches, both cashing in straight set victories over their counterparts. Petralia sits at 7-5 in the spring campaign and 5-4 at court five while Gomis is back to the .500 mark at 6-6 with his 6-4, 7-5 triumph.
Longwood gets a chance to bounce back as they host Big South-leading Presbyterian Sunday afternoon at the H-SC Tennis Courts. Match time is set for 2 p.m.
Gardner-Webb 4, Longwood 3
April 01, 2017 at
Singles competition
1. SCHOLL, Maximillian (GWU-M) def. UFFER, Florian (LWUM) 6-3, 6-4
2. BLASCO, Amadeo (LWUM) def. HOGAN, Paul (GWU-M) 6-2, 3-6, 7-5
3. SCHMIDT, Adam (GWU-M) def. FARTHING, Julian (LWUM) 6-1, 6-1
4. PLENTZ, Breno (GWU-M) def. BARDELLOTO, Arthur (LWUM) 6-2, 5-7, 7-6 (10-8)
5. PETRALIA, Noah (LWUM) def. GILBERT, Ross (GWU-M) 6-1, 6-2
6. GOMIS, Jorge (LWUM) def. FORS, Johan (GWU-M) 6-4, 7-5
Doubles competition
1. BLASCO, Amadeo/UFFER, Florian (LWUM) def. HOGAN, Paul/FORS, Johan (GWU-M) 7-6 (7-5)
2. SCHOLL, Maximillian/PLENTZ, Breno (GWU-M) def. FARTHING, Julian/BARDELLOTO, Arthur (LWUM) 6-1
3. SCHMIDT, Adam/GILBERT, Ross (GWU-M) def. PETRALIA, Noah/GOMIS, Jorge (LWUM) 7-6 (8-6)
Match Notes
Longwood 10-4 (3-2)
Gardner-Webb 10-11 (4-2)
#GoWood
