JACKSONVILLE – Gamecock men's tennis wasted no time bouncing back from Saturday's setback versus Troy. Jacksonville State cruised by its opponents at the Jax State Tennis Courts on Sunday afternoon, drubbing Lipscomb and Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College in a pair of 6-1 blowouts.
"I'm very proud of our guys today," head coach
Trey Morris said after the two wins. "The theme of the day for us was 'respond.' We weren't happy with the way we went about our business yesterday against Troy, so that was the challenge. Are you going to respond well to the adversity?"
Jax State (5-4) responded early by rolling to the doubles point versus Lipscomb (3-4).
Marko Milosavljevic and
Zach Murphy tallied a 6-3 win in the top flight and a 6-4 result in No. 3 doubles by
Logan Haga and
Xavier Sarda Marti wrapped up two-on-two play.
Singles action was similarly dominant for the Red-and-White. Sarda Marti (7-6 [7-1], 6-1) scored a two-set win on court three and the Gamecocks were put at the doorstep of victory when Vanja Dorbnjac (3-6, 7-5, 6-0) and
Liam Day (6-3, 3-6, 6-3) posted three-set decisions in No. 2 and 6 singles respectively. Though the top showdown went in favor of the Bisons, Jacksonville State clinched the match with tight comebacks by Milosavljevic (4-6, 6-4, 7-6 [8-6]) and
Matei Palcau (3-6, 6-4, 6-3).
Mississippi Gulf Coast (0-1) was no match for Jax State in the afternoon affair. Morris' squad swept doubles action, with the tandems of Dobrnjac and Sarda Marti (6-2), Milosavljevic and
Zach Murphy (6-2), and Day and
Lucius Soller (6-1) posting quick wins.
Haga (6-0, 6-0) and Soller (6-1, 6-0) opened singles play at the bottom of the lineup with decisive differences and Murphy secured the match result with a 6-2, 6-0, showing in No. 4 singles. Palcau (6-1, 6-0) and
Alin Fatu (6-2, 6-2) added two-set decisions on courts three and one for good measure to wrap up a successful day of tennis in Calhoun County.
"Overall, our guys responded phenomenally," Morris said. "We brought it today in two very physical, tough matches and came out with two 6-1 victories. We're going to use this as momentum heading forward into training next week and then into an important weekend at home for us against Furman and Chattanooga."
The Gamecocks remain at the Jax State Tennis Courts for a pair of matches next weekend. They host Furman at 3 p.m. Saturday, then take on Chattanooga at 2 p.m. next Sunday. Admission is free to both matches, and fans unable to attend can follow along with the live stats link provided at JaxStateSports.com.
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State Men's Tennis), Instagram (@JaxStateMTEN), and X (@JaxStateMTEN) accounts.
