The Oglethorpe men's tennis team, currently ranked No. 14 in the Atlantic South region, was upset by an upstart Berry squad in Mount Berry, Ga., Friday afternoon, 6-3, dropping them to 1-1 on the season, 0-1 in SAA play.
The home-standing Vikings came out and surprised the Stormy Petrels early in the match, taking the first set in four of the six singles matches to start the day. The Petrels were able to force a third set in one of them and win one of the matches in which they were ahead after the first set, but Berry came back to take the two three-set matches to clinch the dual match, 5-1, before doubles even started.
Freshman Judd Motz started things out well for the Petrels, giving them a 1-0 lead with a 6-1, 6-2 win at No. 4. That would be the lone singles match Oglethorpe would win, though. Junior Briton Richardson was swept 6-3, 6-3 at No. 5 and junior Matt Roberson fell 6-3, 6-2 at No. 6, giving the Vikings the 2-1 lead. Then, Berry struck a big blow as junior C.J. Antonio went down 6-0, 6-4 in the No. 1 match. Senior Ben Hirsch was able to come back from a set down to force a third at No. 3, but eventually lost 6-3, 1-6, 6-1, bringing Berry to within one match of clinching the afternoon before singles began. They did just that at No. 2, as senior Kirk Zhao went up a set but aggravated an injury, making things very difficult for him. He hung in, but Berry came back to win that match 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.
The Petrels fared better in doubles, as Motz and senior Josh Rosenberg began the proceedings with an 8-4 victory at No. 3. Berry answered with an 8-1 win over senior Craig Borne and sophomore Raines Green at No. 2, but the Petrels finished strong at No. 1, as Antonio and Hirsch won a barn-burner, 9-8 (7-3).
"Unfortuantely, we got beat solidly today all throughout the lineup," said Head Coach Peter Howell. "It just wasn't our day. I give Berry credit because they came out focused and ready to play. We must learn we have to be ready to play every day in this league."
The Petrels will now embark on their spring break trip to Central Florida, where they'll play five matches from Sunday through Wednesday. They'll start on Sunday against No. 38 Coe at 2 p.m. from Sanlando Park in Altamonte Springs, Fla.
