CHARLOTTE, N.C. – For the second consecutive year, the Gardner-Webb men's tennis team had its quest for the program's first-ever Big South Conference Championship end in the Final Match of the Conference Tournament.

The Top-seed Runnin' Bulldogs, who won a program-best 20 dual matches during the spring, lost 4-1 to No.2-seed Asheville Monday (4/22) morning at the Marion Diehl Tennis Center in Charlotte, N.C.

The Championship Match, which was originally scheduled to be played on Sunday (4/21), was rescheduled due to inclement weather.

Gardner-Webb started the title match by taking a 1-0 lead as the Dawgs took the doubles point on courts three and two.

On Court No.3. the duo of senior John Spring (Miramar Beach, Fla.) and junior Alex Lepine (Montreal, Canada) started things off with a 6-3 win over Asheville's Freddy Murray and Sam Nicholson.

Gardner-Webb secured the doubles point at No.2 doubles as its First Team All-Conference Doubles pair of junior Numa Lemieux-Monette (Montral, Canada) and freshman Jurie Terblanche (Perth, Australia) defeated the Bulldogs tandem of Bruno Serra and Cian Ingles, 6-4.

The Runnin' Bulldogs No.1 First Team All-Conference Doubles tandem of senior Eduardo Dias (Parana, Brazil) and senior Chrisjan Van Wyk (Pretoria, South Africa) did not finish their doubles match against  Rafa Serra and Jon Brann Reid.

In singles competition, Asheville dominated on courts two, five, three and four as the two other matches came to an end officially unfinished and the Bulldogs were crowned Big South Tennis Champions.

At No.2 singles, Nicholson prevailed (6-2, 6-0) over Lepine to even things up at 1-1.

Gardner-Webb's Chrisjan Van Wyk lost a quick match (6-1, 6-4) to Serra at No. 5, singles.

Lemieux-Monette was defeated by Asheville's Brann Reid (6-2, 7-5) on Court No. 3. and junior Kim Niethammer (Harrenburg, Germany) lost (6-3, 7-5) to Tarek Erlewein to close out the match on Court. No.4.

"Give Asheville credit, they deserved to win the championship today," said Gardner-Webb head coach Mike Griffith. "We started out slow in key areas in singles and could never get ahead of them."

Asheville will receive the Big South's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Gardner-Webb finishes with a 20-4 overall record.