COLUMBUS, Ga. – #10 Southern Arkansas (10-2) suffered a setback on Monday afternoon and saw its five-match win streak end at the hands of #3 Columbus State (9-1); the highest ranked NCAA opponent that the Muleriders have ever played. The Cougars claimed a 7-0 victory from the Walden Tennis Center, but it wasn't easy for the nationally-prominent foe from the Peach Belt Conference.
 
Doubles action saw SAU's top ranked doubles team in #13 Sander Jans and Marko Nikoliuk take down the top ranked doubles pair in the country in #1 Alvaro Regalado and Javier Cueto Ramos 7-6 (7-2). It was just the second loss of the season for the Cougars' top duo. At No. 2, SAU's #49 Stuart Rehfuss and Sofiane Bah fell 6-4 to #2 Tommaso Schold and Pietro Martinetti in a tight battle.
 
The Muleriders pressure the CSU even more in singles play as #19 Jans took the first set from the country's top singles player in Regalado before falling 6-3, 5-7, 5-10 at No. 1. At No. 3, #10 Nikoliuk dropped set one 6-1 to #42 Schold but rallied to claim set two 7-5, before falling 6-3 in the decisive third frame. At No. 4, it was Ole Valkyser that mounted a comeback after losing the opening set 6-4 to CSU's Christian Garay. Valkyser won set two 6-3, but lost in the third 10-5.
 
Southern Arkansas faces a quick turnaround and another quality opponent as the Muleriders meet #9 North Georgia on Tuesday at 3 p.m.