MCKENZIE, Tenn. - - The Cumberland men's tennis team battled in a tight road match but fell 4-3 to Bethel University in MSC action.

Bethel secured the doubles point after taking two of the three courts. At No. 2 doubles, Arne Sohmer and Arthur Fernandes earned Cumberland's lone doubles victory, defeating Bethel's Andres Jovanovic and Gustavo Santos 6-2. Bethel narrowly claimed the other two matches, topping Carlos Morillas and Matheus Guarnieri 6-4 at No. 1 doubles and defeating Mateus Mori and Mohamed Bouhlel 6-4 at No. 3.

Cumberland responded with a strong showing in singles play, picking up three victories across the lineup.
At No. 2 singles, Arthur Fernandes dominated his match with a convincing 6-0, 6-0 victory over Guile Gomez-Rodriguez to quickly put a point on the board for the Phoenix.

Arne Sohmer followed with another straight-set win at No. 4 singles, defeating Bethel 6-2, 6-2.
The Phoenix also picked up a key win at No. 5 singles where Mateus Mori battled through a tight second set to earn a 6-2, 7-6 (8-6) victory over Kenzo Nishioka.

Bethel secured the remaining courts to seal the match. Carlos Morillas fell at No. 1 singles 6-3, 6-2, Mohamed Bouhlel dropped a three-set battle at No. 3 singles 6-4, 3-6, 3-6, and Matheus Guarnieri was defeated at No. 6 singles 2-6, 7-5, 2-6.

Despite the narrow result, the Phoenix collected three singles victories in a competitive match that came down to the final courts. Both teams will now wait until Wednesday for their next match, taking on Alabama A&M.