JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The Lincoln Memorial University men's tennis team (7-7, 6-5 SAC) completed the regular season and solidified its spot in the South Atlantic Conference Championship field with a 7-2 win over Carson-Newman (4-11, 3-8 SAC) on Sunday in Jefferson City, Tenn.
 
The Railsplitters took two of the three points up for grabs in doubles play, as Joshua Coulthard (Staindrop, England) and Will Sparks (Knoxville, Tenn.) nabbed an 8-2 win over Stefano Daza and Garret Duron at the No. 1 flight, while Pepe Batalla (Barcelona, Spain) and Joshua Peress (Montreal, Quebec, Canada) captured a thrilling 9-8 win over Kevin Mendes and Juan Sebastian Perez in the second flight.
 
Joao Pedro Oliveria and Austin Mackay mustered the only point for the Eagles in doubles play with an 8-3 win over Stefan Hall (Stratford, PEI) and Carlos Zunino (Samborondon, Ecuador) in the third flight.
 
Aside from Coulthard's 6-3, 6-1 loss to Pedro Oliveria in the top flight, the Railsplitters dominated singles play.
 
Batalla bested Sebastian Perez 6-3, 7-6 at No. 2 singles, while Sparks battled for a three-set win over Daza in the third flight. Peress cruised in a 6-2, 6-2 win over Mackay in the fourth flight and Guilherme Rocha (Victoria, Brazil) collected a 6-2, 7-6 win over Mendes in the fifth flight. Zunino made it five out of six for the Railsplitters with a 6-2, 7-6 victory over Duron in the sixth and final flight.
 
The Railsplitters earned the No. 6 seed for the upcoming South Atlantic Conference tournament, drawing three-seeded Anderson for the quarterfinal round matchup. Lincoln Memorial and Anderson are scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. on April 16 in Brevard, N.C. The Trojans won the regular-season meeting 5-4 on March 21 in Harrogate, Tenn.  

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Lincoln Memorial 7, Carson-Newman 2
April 12, 2015 at Jefferson City, TN (Carson-Newman Tennis Complex) 
 

Singles competition

1. Joao Pedro Oliveria (C-N) def. Joshua Coulthard (LMU) 6-3, 6-1

2. Pepe Batalla (LMU) def. Juan Sebastian Perez (C-N) 6-3, 7-6

3. Will Sparks (LMU) def. Stefano Daza (C-N) 6-7, 6-0, 6-4

4. Joshua Peress (LMU) def. Austin Mackay (C-N) 6-2, 6-2

5. Guilherme Rocha (LMU) def. Kevin Mendes (C-N) 6-2, 7-6

6. Carlos Zunino (LMU) def. Garret Duron (C-N) 6-2, 7-6

 

Doubles competition

1. Joshua Coulthard/Will Sparks (LMU) def. Stefano Daza/Garret Duron (C-N) 8-2

2. Pepe Batalla/Joshua Peress (LMU) def. Kevin Mendes/Juan Sebastian Perez (C-N) 9-8

3. Joao Pedro Oliveria/Austin Mackay (C-N) def. Stefan Hall/Carlos Zunino (LMU) 8-3

 

Match Notes

Lincoln Memorial 7-7, 6-5 SAC

Carson-Newman 4-11, 3-8 SAC