No. 2 Liberty Survives No. 3 Jacksonville 4

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Liberty men's tennis (14-9) secured a 4-1 victory over Jacksonville State (18-4) on Saturday in the semifinal round of the 2026 Conference USA Men's Tennis Championship. Liberty advances to take on tournament host, No. 1 seed Middle Tennessee on Sunday at noon ET/11 a.m. CT at the MTSU Outdoor Courts in Murfreesboro, Tenn.

The Flames clinched the doubles point with wins at the courts one and two then captured three singles victories at the No. 3, No. 4, and No. 5 positions.

Liberty secured the doubles point with decisive wins on both completed courts. At No. 1 doubles, David Ekpenyong and Benjamin Sparks defeated Timo De Visser and David Krasner, 6-4. Shortly after, Rodrigo Santiago Arraez and Guy Vorwerk clinched the doubles point with a 6-4 victory over Marko Milosavljevic and Lucius Soller at No. 2 doubles.

In singles action, Liberty extended its lead with Arraez dominating Aman Dahiya at No. 3 singles, 6-0, 6-1. The Gamecocks responded as Charlie Penman overcame Siwanat Auytayakul on court one, 6-2, 7-6 (3), narrowing the margin. David Ekpenyong secured a hard-fought 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 win over Timo De Visser at No. 5 singles to push Jax State to the brink up 3-1.

Carl Roothman delivered a comeback victory at No. 4 singles, defeating Marko Milosavljevic 3-6, 6-1, 7-5. With this victory, Liberty reached the necessary four points to claim the match. Liberty was threatening on each the remaining two courts.

Thoughts from Head Coach Derek Schwandt

"I'm proud of our team and the fight and grit we brought to this match against a tough opponent. Thank You Father for loving us first, it's an honor to fight for Liberty

Liberty 4, Jacksonville State 1

Doubles

David Ekpenyong/Benjamin Sparks (LU) def. Timo De Visser/David Krasner (JSU) 6-4

R Santiago Arraez/Guy Vorwerk (LU) def. Marko Milosavljevic/Lucius Soller (JSU) 6-4

Zach Murphy/Charlie Penman (JSU) vs. Ernst Gouws/Carl Roothman (LU) 4-4 (unfinished)

Order of finish: 1, 2

Singles

Charlie Penman (JSU) def. Siwanat Auytayakul (LU) 6-2, 7-6(3)

R Santiago Arraez (LU) def. Aman Dahiya (JSU) 6-0, 6-1

Carl Roothman (LU) def. Marko Milosavljevic (JSU) 3-6, 6-1, 7-5

David Ekpenyong (LU) def. Timo De Visser (JSU) 6-3, 4-6, 6-3

David Krasner (JSU) vs. Benjamin Sparks (LU) 3-6, 6-2, 4-4 (unfinished)

Alin Fatu (JSU) vs. Chase Robinson (LU) 6-2, 0-6, 2-5 (unfinished)

Order of finish: 3, 1, 5, 4

Flames News & Notes

· Liberty advances to the CUSA Championship title game for the third consecutive season. The Flames finished as runners-up to MTSU in both seasons, including a loss at MTSU in 2024.

· The Flames oust Jacksonville State in a conference championship for the fifth consecutive season, twice in the ASUN and twice in CUSA.

· Liberty improves to a collective 70-58 (.547) singles record and a 35-21 (.625) doubles mark.

· Roothman (11-10) extended his winning streak to five singles matches.

· Sparks and Ekpenyong improve to (11-6) improve to 6-4 in the No. 1 doubles position.

· Arraez and Vorwerk boost their team-best doubles mark to 13-4.

Up Next

No. 2 Liberty will meet No. 1 Middle Tennessee in the CUSA Championship final for the third consecutive season on Sunday at noon ET/11 a.m. CT from the MTSU outdoor Courts. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.

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