ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – No. 30 Southern Arkansas and No. 40 Southeastern Oklahoma State met for the second time this season and the stakes were a lot larger than their previous meeting: the Great American Conference opener for both teams on March 5 in Magnolia that the Muleriders took 4-2. On Saturday afternoon from inside the Ward Tennis Center on the campus of Ouachita Baptist, it was much of the same result for the Muleriders as the SAU Men put away the Savage Storm 4-1 behind several impressive and gritty performances.
 
The win is the 20^th for Southern Arkansas in a season which is its first of NCAA action as well as the first year of men's tennis at SAU since 1992-93. More importantly, the victory sends the Muleriders to the NCAA Division II National Championship Round of 16 in Altamonte Springs, Florida, on May 21-24.
 
As they did in the first meeting, the Muleriders jumped out early by claiming the doubles point as Stuart Rehfuss and Aleksandr Pokusaev clinched the win with a 6-3 victory over the Savage Storm's Benjamin Finet and Ondrej Nice. For SAU, it was Marko Nikoliuk and Yuri Gondouin that picked up a 6-2 win on line three doubles as the pair toppled Milos Vuckovic and Juan Scoppetta for the first of the two victories.
 
With the momentum, Alexandre Machaj quickly put the Muleriders up 2-0 as he cruised to a 6-1, 6-2 win over Danrich Kruger at line four. SOSU's Sandro Lena defeated Nikoliuk in a hard fought match 6-3, 7-5 at line three, but it was wins at lines one and two that sealed the deal for the Muleriders.
 
Rehfuss, SAU's top line player all season, registered a tremendous performance in a 7-6, 6-4 straight sets win over the Savage Storm's Scoppetta; the fourth ranked player in Division II Men's Tennis and the GAC's Player of the Year. Clinching the match for the Muleriders and locking in the squad's ticket to the Sunshine State was Gondouin who battled back from a set two loss as well as a 4-1 deficit in the final frame to win 6-4, 5-7, 6-4.
 
In the Central Region I Preliminary Round, (1) Southwest Baptist defeated (4) Harding 4-0 and will join the Muleriders in Florida.
 
More information on the National Championship Tournament will be made available in the coming days. Keep up-to-date with the SAU Men's historic postseason run on www.MuleriderAthletics.com.
 
Doubles competition (3,1)       
1. Stuart Rehfuss/Aleksandr Pokusaev (SAU) def. Benjamin Finet/Ondrej Nice (SE) 6-3
2. Alexandre Machaj/Gustavo Kerber (SAU) vs. Danrich Kruger/Sandro Lena (SE) 3-4 (UF)
3. Marko Nikoliuk/Yuri Gondouin (SAU) def. Milos Vuckovic/Juan Scoppetta (SE) 6-2
 
Singles competition (4,3,1,2)
1. No. 44 Stuart Rehfuss (SAU) def. No. 4 Juan Scoppetta (SE) 7-6, 6-4 
2. Yuri Gondouin (SAU) def. Ondrej Nice (SE) 6-4, 5-7, 6-4
3. Sandro Lena (SE) def. Marko Nikoliuk (SAU) 6-3, 7-5 
4. Alexandre Machaj (SAU) def. Danrich Kruger (SE) 6-1, 6-2
5. Aleksandr Pokusaev (SAU) vs. Benjamin Finet (SE) 6-2, 2-3 (UF)        
6. Raymond Marin (SAU) vs. Milos Vuckovic (SE) 2-1 (UF)