By Brady Whitt

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men's tennis team dropped a tough match today against Mercer. The Mocs fought hard in both doubles and singles but lost to the Bears 7-0.

Mercer started off quickly as they won, 8-2, at No. 1 doubles. Austin Emmet and Oliver Snaider claimed the doubles point for the Bears as they posted an (8-7(4)) win over Lucas Plesky and Nic Wilson at No. 2.

Juniors Nick Wingord and Luke Saunders gave the Mocs a spark before heading into singles as they came back and defeated Sam Philp and Anderson Scarpa by a score of 8-6 at No. 3.

The Bears continued their success in singles play as Arnav Mohanty posted a (6-2, 6-4) win over Junior Lucas Plesky at No. 2. Oliver Snaider finished next at No. 1 as he walks away with a (7-5, 6-4) victory over senior Pavels Grigorjevs putting Mercer up 3-0 on the Mocs in the match.

Anderson Scarpa secured the conference win for the Bears as he posted a (6-3, 7-6(5)) win over Junior Nick Wingord at No. 4. The Mocs continued to battle despite losing the overall match. Two of the matches went into a second set tiebreaker but Chattanooga would fall at No. 5 and 3, respectfully.

Junior Gino Delavalle fought hard for Chattanooga as he took the first set at No. 6. He would force a third set in the match but would eventually fall to Manuel de Luis by a score of 6-4, 1-6, 1-0 (6), completing the shutout for the Bears.

“We did have a good week of practice and we were prepared for a team we knew was tough,” stated head coach Carlos Garcia. “They were just more solid than anticipated.  It was a very competitive match and I just give a lot of credit to Mercer. They've done a great job done there.”

Chattanooga drops to 4-12 on the year and 1-3 in conference play. Mercer improves to 10-11 overall and 3-1 in the Southern Conference. The Mocs are back in action next week, hosting conference foe ETSU on Saturday, April 11, at Noon (E.S.T) on the UTC Tennis Courts.  Be sure to check the men's tennis schedule page on GoMocs.com for a link to live scoring.

Mercer 7, Chattanooga 0
April 3, 2015 at Chattanooga (UTC Tennis Courts)
Doubles competition
1. Arnav Mohanty/Arsav Mohanty (MER) def. John Peacey/Pavels Grigorjevs (UTC) 8-2
2. Austin Emmet/Oliver Snaider (MER) def. Lucas Plesky/Nic Wilson (UTC) 8-7 (4)
3. Sam Philp/Anderson Scarpa (MER) def. Luke Saunders/Nick Wingord (UTC) 8-6

Singles competition
1. Oliver Snaider (MER) def. Pavels Grigorjevs (UTC) 7-5, 6-4
2. Arnav Mohanty (MER) def. Lucas Plesky (UTC) 6-2, 6-4
3. Sam Philp (MER) def. Luke Saunders (UTC) 6-4, 7-6(9)
4. Anderson Scarpa (MER) def. Nick Wingord (UTC) 6-3, 7-6(5)
5. Arsav Mohanty (MER) def. Nic Wilson (UTC) 6-2, 7-6(4)
6. Manuel de Luis (MER) def. Gino Delavalle (UTC) 4-6, 6-1, 1-0(0)

Match Notes
Mercer 10-11, 3-1 SoCon
Chattanooga 4-12, 1-3 SoCon
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (2,1,4,5,3,6)
T-3:45 A-45