Lander Beats Lincoln Memorial 5-0 In NCAA Men’s Tennis Tournament

COLUMBUS, GA - The Lincoln Memorial University men's tennis season came to an end Thursday afternoon when the Railsplitters were defeated 5-0 in the first round of the NCAA Southeast Region Tennis Tournament by Lander University.

Lander, ranked no. 14 nationally in the latest NCAA Division II poll, handed the Railsplitters only their second loss of the season while snapping a 14 match win streak that dated back to March 6 when the LMU men defeated South Atlantic Conference opponent Carson-Newman College (8-1).

The Railsplitters had their chance at the beginning of the match. The No. 1 doubles duo of Philipp Hoffmann and Tom Goossens, who were unbeaten on the year and ranked 7th in region doubles play, had match point in their battle with Lander's Christopher Mattsson and Pierre Francis, but were unable to close the deal and lost 9-8.

Railsplitter seniors Hannes Ganss and Bastian Guenther were beaten by Lander's Paul-Henri Arrigoni and Juan Manrique 8-4 while teammate Zack Jones and Gabor-Heredi Szabo led No. 3 doubles 5-2 before Lander University's Carlos Marques and Maxime Desmars came back to win 8-5 to complete the sweep in doubles.

Leading 3-0 following doubles play, Lander only needed two wins in the singles category to capture victory and those came at the No. 1 and the No. 5 positions. For only the third time this season, LMU senior and SAC Men's Tennis Player of the Year Hannes Ganss lost when he was beaten by Lander's Paul-Henri Arrigoni in straight sets 6-3, 6-3. Senior Andras Pauko lost 6-0, 6-0 to Maxime Desmars at No. 5 singles.

The Railsplitters end the 2010 season with a 19-2 overall record, their first South Atlantic Conference regular season title and their first South Atlantic Conference Tournament crown while accumulating the highest winning percentage by an LMU men's tennis team in school history.

Lander 5, Lincoln Memorial 0
May 06, 2010 at Columbus, GA

Singles competition
1. Paul-Henri Arrigoni (LU) def. Hannes Ganss (LMU) 6-3, 6-3
2. Christopher Mattsson (LU) vs. Philipp Hoffmann (LMU) unfinished
3. Pierre Frances (LU) vs. Bastian Guenther (LMU) unfinished
4. Juan Manrique (LU) vs. Gabor Heredi-Szabo (LMU) unfinished
5. Maxime Desmars (LU) def. Andras Pauko (LMU) 6-0, 6-0
6. John Cappabianca (LU) vs. Tom Goossens (LMU) unfinished

Doubles competition
1. Christopher Mattsson/Pierre Frances (LU) def. Philipp Hoffmann/Tom Goossens (LMU) 9-8
2. Paul-Henri Arrigoni/Juan Manrique (LU) def. Hannes Ganss/Bastian Guenther (LMU) 8-4
3. Carlos Marques/Maxime Desmars (LU) def. Gabor Heredi-Szabo/Zack Jones (LMU) 8-5

Match Notes
Lincoln Memorial 19-2; National ranking No. 48; Regional ranking No. 12
Lander 16-6; National ranking No. 14; Regional ranking No. 5
Match 1 - Men's NCAA Division II Southeast-2 Regional
No. 14 Lander advances to play No. 12 GCSU on Friday at 1 p.m.
Lincoln Memorial ends its season at 19-2.
T-3:10 A-100