Jan. 30, 2012

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The UT Arlington men's tennis team was swept 7-0 by Arkansas on Saturday in its first match of the spring 2012 season. It was the Mavericks' first-ever matchup with the Razorbacks.

"It was a hard match to start the season on the road," head coach Diego Benitez said. "Arkansas is a really tough team that will be a contender in the SEC (Southeastern Conference)."

UTA's Yauheni Yakauleu took Arkansas' top player, Gregoire Lehmann, to a third set before dropping a 4-6, 7-6 (8-4), 1-0 (10-6) decision. After suffering a tiebreaker defeat in the second set, the two played a 10-point set in the third to determine a winner.

In addition, UTA's Mindaugas Celedinas played Nikolas Zogaj tough, despite falling in straight sets. The score was 7-6 (8-5), 7-5 in the second line.

"I thought we competed well, especially at No. 1 and No. 2 spots, which is a great sign," Benitez said. "I was expecting a stronger result in the other positions of the lineup, but we did not have all of our players due to illness, so that made it tougher."

All three of the Mavericks doubles teams played well despite suffering defeats. Each match was decided by either an 8-5 or 8-6 score.

The Mavericks will take a week off before returning to action Saturday, Feb. 11 with a pair of home matches against Cameron (10 a.m.) and Centenary (3 p.m.).

Arkansas 7, UT Arlington 0
Doubles
1. Fess/Walters (ARK) def. Subirats/Celedinas (UTA) 8-5
2. Zogaj/Lehmann (ARK) def. Lateko/Yakauleu (UTA) 8-6
3. Taj Harrison/Nott (ARK) def. Moreno/Williams (UTA) 8-6

Singles
1. Gregoire Lehmann (ARK) def. Yauheni Yakauleu (UTA) 4-6, 7-6 (8-4), 1-0 (10-6)
2. Nikolas Zogaj (ARK) def. Mindaugas Celedinas (UTA) 7-6 (8-5), 7-5
3. Matt Walters (ARK) def. David Subirats (UTA) 6-3, 6-0
4. Jovan Parlic (ARK) def. Nicolas Moreno (UTA) 6-2, 6-2
5. Michael Nott (ARK) def. P. Williams (UTA) 6-1, 6-3
6. Hall Fess (ARK) def. Jason Lateko (UTA) 6-1, 6-3

Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (6,4,3,5,2,1)