ROCK HILL, S.C. – Longwood men's tennis junior Julian Farthing picked a good time for his 18th win Monday.

Facing elimination and trailing 3-1 to rival Liberty, Longwood (13-8, 3-4 Big South) rattled-off the final three points of Monday's match to claim its first Big South tournament victory in program history, defeating the Flames 4-3 in the 4/5 quarterfinals matchup and advancing to Tuesday's semifinals.

Just as he's done so many times this season, Farthing delivered a clutch three-set victory that sealed the latest milestone for a Longwood program that has taken off the past two seasons.

"It feels amazing," said Farthing, who clinched the Lancers' first Big South tournament win. "This is what we've been working towards all year."

"We're extremely happy, the whole team is euphoric to be able to beat a team like Liberty, who turned out to be one of the top teams in the conference," said first-year head coach Jhonnatan Medina Alvarez. "We were able to win in doubles after we spent a lot of time working on it. We fell down 3-1 and were able to come back. I'm extremely proud of them and happy."

Farthing improved his record to 18-1 at the fourth flight with his three-set win as he capped off the match-closing 3-0 run after sophomore ace Amadeo Blasco took flight one in three sets 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 and freshman Daniel Hernandez collected a straight-set 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (8-6) win.

"I wanted to give it my all in order to give the program it's first-ever tournament win in program history, as well as for our seniors and everyone who supports our team every day," Farthing said of his milestone victory.

"I'm happy for all of the players because I know how important it is for a student-athlete to be in this moment, having something to share for the rest of their lives," Medina Alvarez said. "I'm happy to also be part of that. We played some great tennis today allowing us to win."

Longwood jumped out to the early 1-0 lead thanks to doubles wins from Amadeo Blasco/Raisei Sakai 7-6 (10-8) at flight one and Jorge Godoy/Valentin Popescu by a 6-0 margin at the second flight.

It was short-lived, however, as Liberty (12-12, 4-3 Big South) stormed back for a 3-1 lead thanks to straight-set wins at flights two, three and five,  by Chase Burton, Eddie Gutierrez and Alex Poynter, ultimately setting the stage for Lancer heroics.

Farthing's 18th win of the spring and 24th on the season was inarguably his most important as both he and Blasco hold the top two spots for most single-season wins and are the first pair of Lancers to accumulate 20-plus wins in the same season in program history.

"I want to say thank you to the Longwood athletics department, especially Coach Lopez, who helped myself and the team today," Medina Alvarez said. "I'm extremely happy to be able to spend these kinds of moments with my best friend. Her being there today was a beautiful feeling."
Medina Alvarez added, "I came into this program with not much knowledge in college tennis, so I put my heart and passion into it and the guys were able to buy in. This is the result we've been building for."

Blasco's three-set, rally-starting victory at the top of the rotation pushed his record to 16-5 in the spring and 29-7 overall as he's quickly etched his name alongside the all-time greats in men's tennis program history.

Meanwhile, Farthing extended his win streak to 12-straight – a team-high and career-best run.

A native of Palma de Mallorca, Spain, Hernandez brought his overall record to 15-15 with an even 10-10 spring mark. Hernandez has won five straight matches as the Lancers have won four-consecutive overall decisions.

The trio of Blasco, Farthing and Hernandez are a combined 26-4 over their last 30 matches, keying the late-season charge to the Big South semifinals.

Fifth-seeded Longwood moves on to play top seed and host Winthrop Tuesday morning looking to avenge last season's 4-1 tournament loss. Tuesday will also be the first time the Lancers have made an appearance in the semifinals.

Match time against the Eagles is set for 10 a.m. with a spot in the Big South Championship on the line.

"The work and time that everyone at the school has put into the program – this is for all of them. In moments like this you are appreciative of what you have, and I know that I have many people in Farmville cheering on the team," Medina Alvarez said. "Tomorrow, we'll go out and try for greatness. Let's enjoy this moment, but also keep pushing forward tomorrow."

Big South Quarterfinals
#5 Longwood 4, #4 Liberty 3
April 16, 2018 | Rock Hill, S.C.

Singles:
1. Blasco (LWU) def. Matheson (Liberty) 7-5, 3-6, 6-3
2. Burton (Liberty) def. Popescu (LWU) 7-5, 6-4
3. Gutierrez (Liberty) def. Sakai (LWU) 6-1, 6-0
4. Farthing (LWU) def. Salas (Liberty) 6-7, 6-3, 6-4
5. Poynter (Liberty) def. Godoy (LWU) 6-2, 6-1
6. Hernandez (LWU) def. Castano (Liberty) 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (8-6)

Doubles:
1. Blasco/Sakai (LWU) def. Castano/Poynter (Liberty) 7-6 (10-8)
2. Godoy/Sakai (LWU) def. Matheson/Burton (Liberty) 6-0
3. Gutierrez/Salas (Liberty) vs. Farthing/Hernandez 6-6, unfinished

Match Notes:
No. 4 seed Liberty
No. 5 seed Longwood

Order of Finish:
Doubles (2, 1); Singles (5, 3, 2, 1, 6, 4)

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