GREENVILLE, S.C. – Furman topped Liberty, 5-2, in men's tennis action Friday at the Sports Racket in Lynchburg, Va. 

Furman won a tight match at flight three doubles to clinch the opening point and swing the momentum toward the Paladins heading into singles play.  Seniors Matt Browne and Ben Horst teamed up to beat Eddie Gutierrez and Ryker Heller, 6-1, at flight one, then the Flames' Egon Samaai and Sam Matheson notched a 6-3 victory over junior Adam Steryous and sophomore Cameron Green in the top-seeded match-up to even the score.  In the decisive flight three contest, freshman Alex Steryous and sophomore Stefan Rhodes held on for a 7-6(5) win versus Diego Castano and David Bush to take the point.

The Paladins won the first two singles points in straight sets to take a 3-0 lead, as Green topped Castano, 6-1, 6-1, at flight three, and Horst downed Gutierrez, 6-1, 6-3, at number four.  Liberty's Samaai came from behind for a 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 win over Browne at flight two, then Matheson recorded a 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 advantage versus Adam Steryous in the top-flighted contest to pull the Flames within one, 3-2.

Sophomore Josh Pistorius clinched the win for Furman with a 6-0, 7-5 victory over Alex Pointer at flight five, then sophomore Galen Arney defeated Bush, 6-3, 1-6, 1-0(10-3) in the number six match-up.

Furman (2-2) will square off against Virginia in Charlottesville Saturday at 1 p.m.

Julie Paré, Furman Sports Information

Furman 5, Liberty 2
Feb 05, 2016 at Lynchburg, Va. (Sports Racket)