Box Score MOBILE, Ala. – It had to seem like a small relief for Lamar University's men's team to be able to step on the court at South Alabama Tuesday afternoon. The day prior saw more cancellations due to rain. It was a different story Tuesday as the young Cardinals finally got a chance to play putting up a strong fight against South Alabama Tuesday but came up short, 6-1.
 
The Jaguars backed LU into an early corner forcing Big Red to fight from behind all match. After picking up the doubles point, South Alabama's Sacha Modica added to the lead with a victory at No. 3 singles. The Jaguars then pushed their advantage to 3-0 following a victory at line one.
 
Despite the early hole, the Cardinals appeared to be mounting a surge on courts 2, 4 and 5. Senior Logan Powell forced his first set to a tiebreak, while freshmen Roy Stepanov and Arthur Serafim were locked in matches that would be heading to a third set.
 
Big Red split the two three-set matches with their hosts as Serafim recorded a hard fought 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) decision over Lucas Gonzalez at No. 4 singles for the Cardinals' first point of the match. Unfortunately, the Cardinals were unable to follow up with any other victories to cut into the lead. South Alabama closed out the match with wins on courts 2, 6 and 5, respectively, for the overall win.
 
The Cardinals return to action Saturday, Feb. 24, when they travel to Edinburg, Texas, to take on UT Rio Grande Valley. The match against the Vaqueros will begin at 1 p.m.
 
-LU CARDINALS-