Wingate, N.C.----Wingate University junior Fernando Montemurro (Sao Paulo, Brazil) put the finishing touches on a six-hour-and-change match Monday night, claiming a three-set singles victory as the Bulldogs defeated Anderson (S.C.) University 5-4 at the WU Tennis Complex.

The victory nudges Wingate’s record to 5-3 overall. The number 24 team in the Campbell/ITA NCAA Division II top 25 poll, Anderson falls to 7-3 overall. The Trojans saw a five-match winning streak end Monday night.

Wingate avenges a loss in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Division II play-offs, when the future South Atlantic Conference member AU Trojans sent the Bulldogs packing 5-2 in Milledgeville, Ga.

Montemurro knew about the match’s implications, as Anderson is number 10 in the Southeast Region, while Wingate is number 12. “I was trying to focus,” Montemurro says. “I knew we needed (to win) this match. I was trying to stay focused on every point.”

“The match was important for us (in the region),” Montemurro adds. “We didn’t play well in our last match (a 6-3 SAC loss to Lincoln Memorial Feb. 26)…and we were upset about our performance. I knew this match would pick us up as we prepare for Catawba tomorrow.”

Montemurro lost a heart-breaking first set 7-6 (12-10 tie-breaker) to Anderson freshman Daniel Gonzalez (Palmas, Brazil) at the number six singles flight. The second-year Bulldog rallied to take the final two sets 6-3, 6-2. Wingate won three of the four three-set singles matches Monday.

The Bulldogs tied the epic struggle at 4-4 when sophomore Flavio Rathsam (Sao Paulo, Brazil) outlasted AU freshman Deni Mehagic 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 at the number five singles flight. Rathsam is 8-0 this season and 21-1 for his young Wingate career. He had a hand in both Bulldog victories in the aforementioned NCAA play-off tilt last year.

Both Rathsam and classmate Bruno Pudence (Sao Paulo, Brazil) won two matches each Monday. In the number one singles match, Pudence rallied for a 5-7, 6-1, 7-6 (4) victory over Trojan senior Renato Assuncao (Sao Paulo, Brazil). Earlier in the day, Pudence and Rathsam combined for an 8-6 triumph over Assuncao and Stan Atema at the number one doubles flight.

Wingate will have little time to rest on its laurels, as the Bulldogs entertain SAC rival Catawba College Tuesday at 3 p.m. Anderson will also hit the courts Tuesday, visiting number 14 Lander University for a 2 p.m. contest.

NCAA DIVISION II MEN’S MATCH RESULTS
WINGATE 5, #24 ANDERSON (S.C.) 4 (at Wingate, N.C.)

Singles
#1 Bruno Pudence (WIN) def. Renato Assuncao (AU) 5-7, 6-1, 7-6 (4)
#2 Ilya Zakharov (AU) def. Matthew Lichtenstein (WIN) 6-3, 6-4
#3 Stan Atema (AU) def. Drew Owen (WIN) 4-6, 6-4, 6-1
#4 John Karle (AU) def. Braeden Patchell (WIN) 6-3, 6-1
#5 Flavio Rathsam (WIN) def. Deni Mehagic (AU) 4-6, 6-2, 6-2
#6 Fernando Montemurro (WIN) def. Daniel Gonzalez (AU) 6-7 (10), 6-3, 6-2
Doubles
#1 Pudence/Rathsam (WIN) def. Assuncao/Atema (AU) 8-6
#2 Zakharov/Karle (AU) def. Patchell/Louis Villarroel (WIN) 8-6
#3 Lichtenstein/Owen (WIN) def. Mehagic/Gonzalez (AU) 8-2
RECORDS: Wingate 5-3 overall, #24 Anderson (S.C.) 7-3 overall