ORLANDO, Fla. – No. 15 seed Ole Miss (13-11) was defeated, 4-1, by No. 2 seed Baylor (32-4) in the NCAA Team Championships Sweet 16 at the USTA National Campus on Monday.

 

The Rebels were up for the challenge of facing the Oracle/ITA No. 1 ranked Baylor Bears, and claimed one match off of the No. 2 overall seed in the tournament. The Rebels also forced three singles matches to go to three sets.

 

The Bears took an opening 1-0 match lead by sweeping the Rebels in doubles. Ole Miss fell on Court No. 2, 6-1, and on Court No. 3, 6-3. No. 1 Finn Reynolds and Tim Sandkaulen had their match go unfinished versus No. 9 Constantin Frantzen and Sven Lah.

 

The Rebels won one singles match, lost three matches, and had two matches go unfinished. Ole Miss fell behind 2-0 after Baylor’s Nick Stachowiak defeated John Hallquist Lithén in straight sets, 6-4, 6-0.

 

Ole Miss brought the match back to a one-point contest by claiming No. 2 Singles. No. 16 Reynolds won 6-1, 6-4 over No. 11 Matias Soto. Reynolds earned his team leading eighth ranked victory of the season, and has defeated three top-15 opponents this season. Reynolds snapped a four-match skid and improved to 11-10 overall this season.

 

Baylor won the next two matches to defeat Ole Miss, 4-1. Lukas Engelhardt fell 6-4, 6-4 to Spencer Furman at No. 6 Singles, and Simon Junk lost to Charlie Broom at No. 5 Singles, 6-2, 2-6, 4-6. Broom’s 23rd victory of the season clinched the win for the Bears.

 

Both No. 29 Nikola Slavic and No. 32 Sandkaulen had their matches go unfinished in the third set at the time of stoppage. Slavic was tied 2-2 with Lah, and Sandkaulen trailed No. 21 Adrian Boitan, 4-3, in the final set.

 

Ole Miss 2021 Season Highlights

• Reached NCAA Sweet 16 for the 18th time in program history
• Swept both Belmont and Tulane 4-0 in the NCAA First and Second Rounds
• Finished the season 13-11 overall and 7-5 in SEC play
• Reached the SEC Championships Quarterfinals
• First winning record in SEC play since 2015
• Placed third in the Raleigh Regional at ITA Kickoff Weekend
• Earned eight ranked victories (all top 40)
• Four student-athletes voted all-conference (Two All-SEC First Team, one All-SEC Second Team, one All Freshman)
• Three individuals to compete in NCAA Individual Championships (Reynolds, Sandkaulen, Slavic)
• Head Coach Toby Hansson earned his 100th career victory on March 21 in the Rebels’ 4-3 win at No. 24 Oklahoma State

Coach Hansson’s Thoughts

 

“Everybody was battling out there today and put us in a position to win. Hats off to Baylor, they put in a very good performance today, and it’s never easy facing the No. 1 ranked team in the country.

 

We had a great season. The team kept improving the whole time, and we really felt like we were playing some of our best tennis towards the end of the season too. We have a lot to be proud of.”

 

Next Up/Coming Up

 

Three Rebels are set to compete for individual titles. Reynolds and Sandkaulen earned the top overall seed in the NCAA Doubles Championships. Reynolds, Sandkaulen and Slavic earned at-large bids into the NCAA Singles Championships. The individual championships begin in Orlando on Sunday with draws to be released later this week.

 

Singles Results

 

1. No. 21 Adrian Boitan (BU) vs. No. 32 Tim Sandkaulen, 6-2, 3-6, 4-3 (unfinished)

2. No. 16 Finn Reynolds def. No. 11 Matias Soto (BU), 6-1, 6-4

3. Nikola Slavic vs. Sven Lah (BU), 6-3, 3-6, 2-2 (unfinished)

4. Nick Stachowiak (BU) def. John Hallquist Lithén, 6-4, 6-0

5. Charlie Broom (BU) def. Simon Junk, 2-6, 6-2, 6-4

6. Spencer Furman (BU) def. Lukas Engelhardt, 6-4, 6-4

 

Doubles Results

 

1. No. 9 Constantin Frantzen/Sven Lah (BU) vs. No. 1 Finn Reynolds/Tim Sandkaulen, 5-2 (unfinished)
2. No. 75 Matias Soto/ Nick Stachowiak (BU) def. Brady Draheim/Simon Junk, 6-1

3. Finn Bass/Charlie Broom (BU) def. Jakob Cadonau/Lukas Engelhardt, 6-3

 

For more information on Ole Miss Men’s Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMTennis, on Facebook at OleMissMTennis and on Instagram at OleMissMTennis, follow Coach Hansson on Twitter at @TennisToby.