MISENHEIMER, N.C. - The Guilford College men's tennis team ventured to Knapp Tennis Center on Saturday to compete in the Knapp Family Invitational, hosted by Pfeiffer University.
Guilford saw action in nine singles and six doubles contests throughout the day. Andres Mercedes (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) competed in flight A, Brandon Hermes (West Hartford, Conn.) competed in flight B, Henry Austin (Winterville, N.C.) in flight C, Evan Wong (Greensboro, N.C.) participated in flight D, Rylan Tuten (Asheville, N.C.) in flight E, Emmanuel Oye (Clayton, N.C.) played in flight F, Turner Johnson (Oak Ridge, N.C.) in flight G, and Kade Talton (Pilot Mountain, N.C.) competed in flight H.
Austin secured an easy win in the semifinals of flight C against Johnson & Wales' Hugo Cossais by a tally of 6-1, 6-2 to advance to the finals. Austin fought hard in the first set of the finals, but ultimately fell in the second set against Pfeiffer's Mathius Dessureau by a score of 7-5, 6-0.
Oye had a strong showing on the day, winning his flight in style. He started off with a "walk in the park", capturing an early lead in the first set, 6-2, against Pfeiffer's Laurin Rauer, and finishing off with a win in the second set, 6-1, to advance to the finals. In the finals, Oye continued to assert his dominance with a 6-3 win in the first set and a 7-5 win in the second set against Lukas Rathgeb of Randolph College.
In flight H, Talton had a promising showing, securing a win against Randolph's Nate Quisbert by a tally of 6-2 in the first set and 6-4 in the second set, advancing to the finals. Unfortunately, Talton fell in a nail biter of a matchup against Goncalo Olivera of Pfeiffer University. Set one ended with a score of 7-5, followed by a score of 6-4 in the second set.
The doubles competition showed many positives for the Quakers, as two flights were secured with a pair of sweeps. In the first flight, the duo of Hermes and Mercedes was unstoppable, as their first matchup showed no signs of struggle; they steam rolled Pfeiffer's Dessureau and Benedikt by a tally of 6-1 advancing to the finals. Hermes and Mercedes sent the competition home, securing a win versus Jacob Martin and Jaylon Salters of Johnson and Wales by a score of 6-3.
Flight two saw Wong and Tuten take over, as they secured the flight. The first match had Wong and Tuten facing JWU's Dylan Hight and Sam Cicciarello, securing a win by a tally of 6-2. Wong and Tuten got the job done in the finals against Bogdan Stan and Laurin Rauer of Pfeiffer University, by a tally of 6-2.
This tournament wraps up the fall season for the Quakers. The men's tennis team returns to action on Thursday, February 6, as they host Belmont Abbey College. Start time is yet to be determined.
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