The eighth-ranked Georgia men’s tennis team began the final week of the regular season with a 4-0 victory over Arkansas Friday afternoon at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

The Bulldogs (18-3, 10-1 SEC) can clinch a share of the 2015 SEC title and the No. 1 seed in the SEC Tournament with a win over 14th-ranked Ole Miss Saturday at 5 p.m.

“Our guys are competing for an SEC title, so this is a very meaningful weekend for us as a team and for them as individuals as well,” said head coach Manuel Diaz. “We’ve had great performances by our No. 1 doubles team lately, and they take a lot of pride in finishing strong. Our guys know how good they are and that they can beat anyone in the country if they continue to take care of fundaments and compete as a team and compliment each other and have each other’s backs. They are doing that extremely well.”

Georgia won doubles matches at Nos. 1 and 2 to take a 1-0 lead. At No. 1, the nation’s top-ranked tandem of Austin Smith and Ben Wagland cruised to a 6-1 win against Santiago Munoz and Branch Terrell, then Wayne Montgomery and Paul Oosterbaan clinched the point with a 6-4 win over Jovan Parlic and Giammarco Micolani at No. 2. Nathan Pasha and Nick Wood were in a tiebreaker at No. 3 when the point was clinched. Wood was playing for senior Eric Diaz, who underwent surgery earlier in the week.

Montgomery gave Georgia its second team point with a 6-1, 6-2 win over William Albanese at No. 2, then Smith made it 3-0 with a 6-1, 6-4 win over No. 93 Micolani at No. 1. Oosterbaan clinched the match – his second of the season – with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Johan den Toom at No. 5.

Oosterbaan extended his winning streak to nine matches, and he moved to a team-best 7-0 in the SEC.

In the three suspended singles matches, Pasha won the first set against Munoz and was in a tiebreaker in the second set at No. 3, Ben Wagland won the first set and was tied 5-5 in the second set at No. 4 with Parlic, and Peter Bertran led 3-1 in the third set at No. 6.

Georgia will be playing for its 29th SEC regular season title Saturday against Ole Miss. The Bulldogs and Rebels will square off at 5 p.m. at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex. Admission is free, and Georgia’s co-captains – Diaz and Pasha – will be recognized prior to the match as part of Senior Day festivities.

Tennis Match Results
Arkansas vs Georgia
April 9, 2015 at Athens, Ga.
(Dan Magill Tennis Complex)
[su_spacer size=”40″] #8 Georgia 4, #71 Arkansas 0
[su_spacer size=”40″] Singles competition 
1. #34 Austin Smith (UGA) def. #93 Giammarco Micolani (ARK) 6-1, 6-4
2. #27 Wayne Montgomery (UGA) def. William Albanese (ARK) 6-1, 6-2
3. #25 Nathan Pasha (UGA) vs. Santiago Munoz (ARK) 7-5, 6-6 (1-4), unfinished
4. Ben Wagland (UGA) vs. Jovan Parlic (ARK) 6-4, 5-5, unfinished
5. Paul Oosterbaan (UGA) def. Johan den Toom (ARK) 6-3, 6-4
6. Peter Bertran (UGA) vs. Juan Marino (ARK) 6-3, 1-6, 3-1, unfinished
[su_spacer size=”40″] Doubles competition 
1. #1 Austin Smith/Ben Wagland (UGA) def. Santiago Munoz/Branch Terrell (ARK) 6-1
2. Wayne Montgomery/Paul Oosterbaan (UGA) def. Jovan Parlic/Giammarco Micolani (ARK) 6-4
3. Nathan Pasha/Nick Wood (UGA) vs. Johan den Toom/William Albanese (ARK) 6-6 (2-1), unfinished
[su_spacer size=”40″] Match Notes:
Arkansas 11-14 (1-10); National ranking #71
Georgia 18-3 (10-1); National ranking #8
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (2,1,5)
Official: Clark Weaver  T-2:21  A-357