LAKELAND - Holding on to a 4-3 lead, 8th-ranked Rollins won two come-from-behind matches at the fifth and sixth singles flights to stop what appeared to be a Florida Southern comeback, and take a 6-3 win over the Moccasins.
Rollins (2-3, 1-1) won the first point of the day at #3 doubles, and the teams split the other two doubles matches, with both of them decided by the same 9-7 score. Carl Lundberg and Benoit Paradis earned the win for Florida Southern at the #2 position, giving the Mocs their first point and getting them within 2-1 before singles play began.
Florida Southern (0-4, 0-2) then knotted the overall match score at two wins apiece when Ivan Marevic defeated Malte Christesen 6-3, 6-3, but the Tars came right back with a pair of straight set wins at the top two flights. That included one from the top-ranked player in Division II, Lucas Jovita, who defeated Paradis 6-1, 6-3.
Meanwhile, both Robbie Palmiotto and Jorge Gutierrez had one the first set of their matches at the #6 and #5 positions, and Nathan Leavitt was closing down a win for the Moccasins at #4. That left the Mocs trailing only 4-3 and, for the time being, in control of the final two matches still on the court. However, each of those players dropped the second set, with Jason Alabaster rallying from a 5-2 deficit for a 7-5 win over Palmiotto. Alabaster then clinched the outcome for Rollins with a 6-0 win in the third set before Constantin Sturdza gave the Tars their final point.
Florida Southern, which has already played three top-10 Division II teams so far this season, will face another one in its next match. The Moccasins will take on #5 Lynn at 2:00 in Boca Raton on Friday, February 24.
