AUBURN, Ala.- The Auburn men's tennis team went on the road and earned a huge win, outlasting Clemson 4-3 in a four-hour match to improve to 3-0 on the season. Junior Matteo DeVincentis clinched the victory with a tiebreaker third-set win on court four.
"Our guys left their heart and soul on the court tonight," Auburn coach Bobby Reynolds said. "Win or lose, that effort makes the coaches happy."
The doubles tandem of Anders Fry and Diego Chavarria earned a 7-6(7) victory on court three to even things up in doubles. Matteo DeVincentis and Tyler Stice fought back from an early deficit to take the last three points in the set to clinch the doubles point on court one 7-5 for Auburn.
Freshman Finn Murgett got Auburn off to a quick start in singles on court five, winning 6-1, 6-4 to give the Tigers a 2-0 lead. Tim Dollman, playing on court one, defeated Gabriel Diaz Freire 7-5, 7-5 to extend the lead 3-0.
Clemson tightened the match and closed the deficit to 3-2 with victories on court three and six. Tom Wright ultimately came up short in three sets on court two, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 as Clemson tied it at 3-3.
In a highly contested, back and forth matchup that lasted over three hours, Matteo DeVincentis outlasted Callos Kelaidis 6-7(7), 7-5, 7-6(7) to clinch the match for Auburn. Trailing 0-2 in the third set, DeVincentis took a 5-3 lead before the match went to a tiebreaker. DeVincentis once again made a comeback in the tiebreaker, trailing 4-2 before scoring five of the next six points for the win.
Auburn improves to 3-0 on the season. The Tigers return to action Sunday with a doubleheader at home versus VCU at noon CT and Alabama A&M at 5 p.m. CT
Doubles
1. DeVincentis/Stice def. Diaz Freire/Dodens 7-5 (AU)
2. Jahn/Liu def. Wright/Murgett 6-2 (Clemson)
3. Fry/Chavarria def. Giusca/Kelaidis 7-6(7)
Singles
1. Dollman def. Diaz Freire 7-5, 7-5 (AU)
2. Giusca def. Wright 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 (Clemson)
3. Liu def. Stice 6-4, 7-6(7) (Clemson)
4. DeVincentis def. Kelaidis 6-7(7), 7-5, 7-6(7) (AU)
5. Murgett def. Jahn 6-1, 6-4 (AU)
6. Dodens def. Gray 7-5, 7-6(7) (Clemson)
Order of finish: Doubles: 2,3,1. Singles: 5,1,3,6,2,4; Tim of Match: 4:09