NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 40 Vanderbilt Commodores fell to the No. 14 Ole Miss Rebels Friday afternoon in a 6-1 decision.
The Dores got off to a strong start in hard-fought doubles matches. Alex DiValerio and Gonzales Austin, who make up the #56 pair on the ITA’s list, defeated the #63 pair of Nik Scholtz and Jonas Lutjen in a 9-7 battle.
Joe Dorn and Charlie Jones traded points in their doubles match against Johan Backstrom and William Kallberg, with the Rebels besting them to tie the doubles matches at 1-1.
Blake Bazarnik and Jeff Offerdahl tied their match up after dropping the first few points, but lost the next two as Chris and Marcel Thiemann, the #12 doubles pair, beat the Dores 8-6 for the 1-0 lead.
Ole Miss pushed their lead to 3-0, with both Dorn and Bazarnik falling to their opponents, but with four matches being played and the Commodores remaining close on each court, the match was far from being clinched.
Offerdahl defeated his opponent, #61 William Kallberg, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 to give the Commodores a point on the board.
Anton Kovrigin and Austin each forced three sets on their courts, but fell to the Thiemann brothers to give the Rebs the 5-1 lead.
Jones continued his marathon-match ways, swiftly winning his first set against #19 Nik Scholtz but playing a 14-12 tie break point in the second set. Scholtz held out in the third set for a 6-4 win and the 6-1 final over the Dores.
The Commodores end their home slate Sunday at 1:00 p.m. with a match against Mississippi State. Seniors Jones and DiValerio will be honored before their last home match.
Results
Singles
1. #19 Nik Scholtz (Ole Miss) def. #47 Charlie Jones (Vanderbilt) 2-6, 7-6 (14-12), 6-4
2. #36 Marcel Thiemann (Ole Miss) def. Gonzales Austin (Vanderbilt) 6-1, 3-6, 6-3
3. #40 Jonas Lutjen (Ole Miss) def. Blake Bazarnik (Vanderbilt) 6-4, 6-0
4. Jeff Offerdahl (Vanderbilt) def. #61 William Kallberg (Ole Miss) 6-3, 2-6, 7-5
5. Chris Thiemann (Ole Miss) def. Anton Kovrigin (Vanderbilt) 2-6, 6-4, 6-3
6. Johan Backstrom (Ole Miss) def. Joe Dorn (Vanderbilt) 6-2, 6-3
Doubles
1. #56 DiValerio/Austin (Vanderbilt) def. #63 Scholtz/Lutjen (Ole Miss) 9-7
2. #12 C. Thiemann/ M. Thiemann (Ole Miss) def. Bazarnik/Offerdahl (Vanderbilt) 8-6
3. Backstrom/Kallberg (Ole Miss) def. Dorn/Jones (Vanderbilt) 8-6
Match Notes:
#40 Vanderbilt, 7-12 (2-7)
#14 Ole Miss, 11-5 (7-2)
Order of Finish: Singles (3,6,4,5,2,1) Doubles (1,3,2)
