LYNCHBURG, Va. – The George Mason University men's tennis team put forth a strong effort Friday afternoon in the hills of Virginia, but the Patriots could not push past Liberty while falling in a 4-3 decision.
 
Mason won the doubles point, but Liberty won four of the first five singles matches to clinch the contest for the Flames.
 
"I was really happy with how the guys fought today," head coach Jimmy Davis said. "We played against a really tough Liberty team and we set ourselves up for a chance to win, but unfortunately couldn't close out a couple of key big points. We are making progress as a team each match, and I'm seeing improvements in areas we are working on in practice. We have another tough team on Sunday and are looking forward to another challenge to see how we can continue to improve and be ready for our conference matches. We made a big improvement in doubles today, so we are looking to continue that and get a little more consistency in the big moments while sticking to our game plans in singles."
 
Mason's doubles performance was superb on Friday. Senior Daniel Gutierrez and freshman Ryan Charles opened the match with a 6-2 triumph at No. 2. It marked the second victory in the last three matches for Charles and Gutierrez.
 
The Patriots' No. 3 duo also claimed victory, as senior Giuliano Buzoianu and freshman Carter Bradford won 6-3 to clinch the point. The No. 1 team of senior Pally Ray and sophomore Jakob Nielsen also was ahead, 5-2, before their match was called due to the clinch.
 
In singles, Mason took a 2-0 lead after freshman Carter Bradford won easily (6-1, 6-0) at No. 5. He is now 6-2 in dual singles in his inaugural Mason campaign.
 
Liberty won at No. 4 and No. 3 to tie up the match at 2-2.

Then, Nielsen had a hard-fought effort at No. 2 singles. After falling 6-4 in the first, he played to a 6-6 tie in the second set. After a grueling tiebreaker, he ultimately lost 11-13, and the Flames went up 3-2.
 
LU clinched the match at No. 1, with Sam Matheson defeating sophomore Edward Ayers (6-4, 3-6, 6-2) in a lengthy battle.
 
At No. 6, Buzoianu took Mason's third point, winning in three sets over Max Borcuti (6-0, 5-7, 6-2).
 
The Patriots continue their two-match road swing with a 3 p.m. contest at Longwood on Sunday.

#GetPatriotic