CHAMPIONSHIP SCORES
Belmont 4, Tennessee Tech 3
BELMONT 4, TENNESSEE TECH 3
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - he No. 3 seed Belmont men's tennis team took down top-seeded Tennessee Tech, 4-3, Sunday morning at Wesselmann Tennis Center to win the Spring 2021 OVC Tournament Championship.
The Bruins (13-4) earned their first-ever OVC Tournament Championship and a bid to the 2021 NCAA Tournament. The Golden Eagles entered Sunday's title match with just five players, meaning they had to forfeit one doubles and one singles bout.
In doubles play, Belmont dropped its first doubles match to even the score at 1-1 with court No. 2 still in action. The freshman duo of Diego Castro and Tomas Luis logged a close 7-5 victory from the second position to secure the doubles point for the Bruins. Due to the forfeiture of one singles match from Tennessee Tech, Belmont took a 2-0 advantage going into singles play.
To open singles competition, the Bruins split their first two matches, as senior Marko Ilic tabbed an impressive 6-3, 6-3 win at the top spot. The Golden Eagles knotted the match up at 3-3 following a pair of wins, as Belmont's fate came down to Castro at Court No. 4.
Castro registered a 7-6 victory in the first set over freshman Andre Rodeia of Tennessee Tech. Rodeia responded with a 6-4 win in the second set, as it would come down to the final set for the Bruins. Castro finished what he started with a 6-4 victory in the final set to help Belmont to its second conference tournament championship and second NCAA Tournament appearance.
UP NEXT: The Bruins await the NCAA Selection Show, which is slated to take place on next Monday, May 3 at 5:30 p.m. and will be available to stream through NCAA.com.