STARKVILLE, Miss. — Auburn men’s tennis opened its fall season with a tournament championship after going 2-1 at the SEC Starkvegas Showdown. The Tigers beat Mississippi State and Alabama before falling to Vanderbilt in their final match of the tournament.
The Tigers began the tournament Friday with a 4-3 win over host Mississippi State. Freshman Patrik Munkhammar and Alvaro Jimenez each earned singles victories, while Jimenez and junior Joey Phillips added a doubles win. Auburn secured the victory after taking the deciding tiebreaker. The win gave the Tigers a strong start to their fall schedule and put them in position to compete for the tournament title.
Munkhammar continued his strong weekend against Alabama on Saturday, adding two singles wins and a doubles victory in Auburn’s second 4-3 win of the tournament. He defeated Rohan Hazratwala in three sets before beating Yoshka Sborowsky in straight sets. Munkhammar and Phillips also defeated Hazratwala and Aleksander Blus 6-0 in doubles. The doubles victory added another point for Auburn as the Tigers secured their second team result of the weekend.
Auburn closed the tournament Saturday against Vanderbilt, falling 3-2. Phillips and Munkhammar won their doubles match 6-3, and Phillips added a singles victory over Roth Shanoth, 6-3, 7-5. Although Auburn fell in its final match, Auburn had already secured the tournament championship based on its weekend results.
Munkhammar finished the tournament with four singles wins and two doubles wins, while Phillips remained undefeated in doubles. Munkhammar's four singles victories highlighted his individual performance throughout the tournament, while Phillips maintained his perfect doubles record.
Auburn will continue fall competition with four players competing in the M15 Columbia Futures in Columbia, South Carolina, where Duke Markovina, Manuel Lazaro, Tyler Bowers and Iker Urribarrens will compete.
