LYNCHBURG, V.A. – The Gardner-Webb men's tennis team (9-9, 3-3) won their third match in a row Friday afternoon by defeating Big South Conference rival Liberty (9-9, 3-3) 4-3.

Maximilian Scholl defeated #106 and previously undefeated Sam Matheson in straight sets (7-5, 6-1) at No. 1 singles, for his ninth win in a row,  to help secure the win for the Runnin' Bulldogs. 

 

No. 1 and No. 3 doubles started things off for Gardner-Webb giving them a 1-0 lead after claiming the doubles point. Scholl teamed up with Nikita Zverkov to defeat David Bush and Diego Castano at No. 1 doubles 7-6. The duo of Benjamin Kaszas and Yaroslav Prostakov handed Alex Poynter and Eddie Guiterrez a 6-4 loss in the No. 3 slot.

 

Also winning for the Runnin' Bulldogs in their singles matches were Adam Schmidt and Jonathan Walker. Schmidt beat Poynter (6-4, 6-3) at the No. 5 position. Walker's three-set win at No. 6 singles ended up being very pivotal. After falling behind one set to none, Walker came storming back to claim the win over Bush (5-7, 6-3, 6-4).

Head coach Mike Griffith was pleased with his team's performance. "It was a huge win for us today," he said. The win was their fourth in their last five matches and helped even their Big South record at 3-3.

Zverkov, Prostakov and Kaszas all fell in straight sets in their respective singles matches. Egon Samaai handed Zverkov a (6-4, 6-2) loss at No. 2 singles, while Prostakov fell to Gutierrez (6-3, 6-4) in the No. 3 spot. At. No 4 singles Kaszas was outdueled by Castano (6-4, 6-0).

The Runnin' Bulldogs will hit the courts again tomorrow morning when they battle Coastal Carolina at 11 a.m. in Boiling Springs at the Webb Tennis Courts.