ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - The top-ranked Columbus State University men's tennis team couldn't overcome a strong challenge from ninth-ranked Flagler College on Tuesday, falling 4-3 in a Peach Belt Conference match at the Flagler Tennis Center in St. Augustine, Fla.
The match was key in the PBC standings as Flagler (12-4, 3-0) now controls its own destiny to capture the regular-season title. The loss also snapped CSU's 36-match PBC regular-season winning streak. The Cougars' last conference loss was on March 3, 2017.
Flagler gained the advantage after winning the doubles point, including winning first doubles following a game penalty accessed on the Cougars. In the match, 34th-ranked
Alvaro Regalado and
Javier Cueto Ramos were headed to a tiebreak with Oscar Del Granado and Phillip Lemken when the penalty occurred, giving FC the swing win in doubles play.
Eighth-ranked
Tommaso Schold and
Pietro Martinetti were 6-1 winners at second doubles over Nikita Tatyanin and Jagger Ong-Patzwald. The other FC victory came at third doubles, where Jacopo Denitto and Petr Cervinka defeated
Christian Garay and
Felix Steen in a tight 7-6 (8-6) tiebreak.
Columbus State put together a rally in singles play, including taking a 3-2 lead at a point. Top-ranked Regalado gave CSU its first win after breezing by 66th-ranked Del Granado 6-2, 6-2. However, FC quickly evened things with a win at second doubles. No. 32 Tatyanin won 7-6 (7-4, 6-2 in a ranked showdown against 36th-ranked Schold.
The Cougars grabbed the next two wins to move ahead. Martinetti had an easy 6-2, 6-3 at fifth singles over Cedric Holzmann, while 75th-ranked Garay had to work a little harder at third singles. The reigning PBC Player of the Week grabbed a 7-5, 7-6 (8-6) straight-set victory against Cervinka.
Flagler pulled off the upset following three-set wins at fourth and sixth singles. Sixth singles finished first as Jacopo Denitto defeated
Justin Welz 6-3, 5-7, 6-3. Lemken rallied at fourth singles with the 69th-ranked player coming from behind to defeat Steen 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.
UP NEXT
Columbus State takes on another top-10 opponent, hosting rival and fifth-ranked North Georgia at 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 24 at the John W. Walden Tennis Center.
