The men's tennis team lost their final match of the year to No. 26 Rhodes College in North Little Rock, Ark. on Sunday morning, 6-3. After topping Sewanee before falling to Trinity and Rhodes, the Petrels conclude this season just like 2010: matching the school's best SCAC -era finish of fourth place.
Ross Beall and Felix Mann teamed up at No. 1 doubles to secure a win, 9-7 but Oglethorpe fell behind the Lynx after dropping No.'s 2 and 3.
After Felix Mann dispatched his opponent, region No. 13 Riley Erhardt, 6-4, 6-2 the Petrels had knotted the scoreboard at 3-apiece. The Lynx, however, would go on to claim the final three points to earn the hard fought win. Bryan Bailey was the other Petrel to win a match, claiming the competition at No. 5 singles, 6-2, 6-2.
Complete match results versus Rhodes included below.
The Petrels took the exact same path last year in securing their fourth place finish, topping Sewanee in the 4/5 match before falling to No. 1 seed Trinity and No. 3 seed Rhodes.
Oglethorpe finishes 2011 with a 17-5 overall mark, their best winning percentage of the modern era. With only two senior starters (Mann and Beall) graduating this spring, the Petrels will be poised to make another run at the SCAC Title in 2012 .under the guidance of head coach Peter Howell.
