Aggie Men’s Tennis Falls at Vanderbilt

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 7 Texas A&M men's tennis team fell 4-3 to Vanderbilt Friday evening at Brownlee O. Currey Jr. Tennis Center in Nashville, Tenn. The Aggies fell to (19-5, 5-2) on the season while the Commodores improved to (12-8, 3-2).
 
The maroon and white opened play dropping the doubles point to the Commodores. No. 18 Jackson Withrow and Arthur Rinderknech fell to No. 33 Cameron Klinger and Rhys Johnson, 6-2, on court one. Jordi Arconada and Shane Vinsant evened the doubles tally at 1-1 with a 6-4 victory over Daniel Valent and Pen Binet on court three. Max Lunkin and AJ Catanzariti pushed Tate Allwardt and Baker Newman to a tiebreaker to determine the match's first point, but fell in the breaker giving Vanderbilt a 1-0 lead.
 
The Aggies gained some momentum as play moved into singles competition, winning four of six first sets. Junior Max Lunkin made quick work of Alex Ross on court six, winning 6-1, 6-2. The Moscow native picked up his second straight win, improving to 5-2 this spring and 2-0 in SEC play. No. 45 Vinsant gave A&M its first lead of the match, defeating Rhys Johnson 7-5, 6-3 on court two. The Keller, Texas native picked up his 20^th win this year, including a team high 13 dual victories and a 6-1 mark against SEC foes.
 
Vanderbilt evened the score at 2-2 as Baker Newman bested AJ Catanzariti 6-4, 6-3 on court five. The tie did not last long as Withrow defeated Kris Yee 6-4, 6-3 on court five pushing the Aggies ahead 3-2. The senior remained perfect against league opponents, 6-0, and improved to 12-2 this spring.
 
Both matches that remained on the court were headed to a third set. No. 67 Valent took the first set against No. 18 Rinderknech, but the Paris, France native bounced back and forced a decisive third set. Valent took an early lead in the final set, but Rinderknech broke back to get back to 4-4. Valent would then take the final two points and push the Commodores back on level terms with the Aggies.
 
All attention shifted to No. 90 Arconada and No. 92 Klinger on court three. The match stayed on serve all the way to a tiebreaker was required to determine both the individual and team match. Klinger took an early lead in the breaker and held on to clinch the match.
 
The Aggies will return to the Mitchell Tennis Center to take face No. 3 TCU and Nicholls State Monday afternoon. The Aggies and Horned Frogs are set to face-off at 6 p.m. after facing the Cardinals at noon.
 
Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M men's tennis. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the A&M men's tennis team on Twitter by following @AggieMTEN or on Facebook at Facebook.com/AggieMensTennis.
 
#49 Vanderbilt 4, #7 Texas A&M 3
Singles competition
1. #67 Daniel Valent (VANDY) def. #18 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) 6-2, 3-6, 6-4
2. #45 Shane Vinsant (TAMU) def. Rhys Johnson (VANDY) 7-5, 6-3
3. #92 Cameron Klinger (VANDY) def. #90 Jordi Arconada (TAMU) 6-7, 6-4, 7-6
4. Baker Newman (VANDY) def. AJ Catanzariti (TAMU) 6-4, 6-3
5. Jackson Withrow (TAMU) def. Kris Yee (VANDY) 6-4, 6-3
6. Max Lunkin (TAMU) def. Alex Ross (VANDY) 6-1, 6-2
 
Doubles competition
1. #33 Cameron Klinger/Rhys Johnson (VANDY) def. #18 Jackson Withrow/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) 6-2
2. Tate Allwardt/Baker Newman (VANDY) def. Max Lunkin/AJ Catanzariti (TAMU) 7-6
3. Jordi Arconada/Shane Vinsant (TAMU) def. Daniel Valent/Pen Binet (VANDY) 6-4
 
Order of finish: Doubles (1, 3, 2); Singles (6, 2, 4, 5, 1, 3)