Boiling Springs, N.C. - A fast start by Gardner-Webb men's tennis Thursday was not enough, as the Runnin' Bulldogs lost 5-2 to visiting Appalachian State on Thursday afternoon.

The Runnin' Bulldogs drop to 2-6 in the young 2012 season.

Down early in all three doubles matches, Gardner-Webb rallied to win at No. 1 and No. 3 doubles to claim the point and take an early 1-0 lead over the Mountaineers. At No. 3, the duo of Brendan Dempsey/Joao Poli came back from an early deficit to knock off ASU's Matt Saltsgaver/Steve Karandal by an 8-5 margin.

With the point on the line, the No. 1 tandem of Korhan Ates and Adam Knutsson-Sundblad rallied for the win over the Mountaineer's Phillip Kloc/Sebastien King, taking the match by a score of 8-5.

The Runnin' Bulldogs got also got a win from junior Roman Piftor in singles competition, outlasting King to win 7-5, 6-3 at the No. 4 position. Piftor improves his season record to 5-1 at the No. 4 slot, including a perfect 3-0 mark at home.

The Mountaineers earned victories at No.'s 1, 2 and 5 to take control of the match. At No. 5 singles, Poli battled back after being a set down, but was unable to complete the comeback and fell to Karendal 6-4, 3-6, 6-1.

Knutsson started fast at the No. 3 slot in taking the first set, yet dropped the next two and saw a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 decision go in favor of ASU's Alain Humblet.

Gardner-Webb will be back in action this Sunday to host Radford at 1:00 pm and Spartanburg Methodist at 4:00 pm. The match vs. the Highlanders marks the Runnin' Bulldogs Big South Opener this season.

Match Results

Doubles

1. Adam Knutsson-Sundblad/Korhan Ates (GWU) def. Phillip Kloc/Sebastien King (ASU) 8-5

2. Alain Humblet/Alex Markov (ASU) def. Matt Parker/Ernest Alberch (GWU) 8-3

3. Brendan Dempsey/Joao Poli (GWU) def. Matt Saltsgaver/Steve Karendal (ASU) 8-5

Singles

1. Alex Markov (ASU) def. Korhan Ates (GWU) 6-4, 6-4

2. Philip Kloc (ASU) def. Ernest Alberch (GWU) 6-4, 6-3

3. Alain Humblet (ASU) def. Adam Knutsson-Sundblad (GWU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-2

4. Roman Piftor (GWU) def. Sebastien King (ASU) 7-5, 6-3

5. Steve Karendal  (ASU) def. Joao Poli (GWU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-1

6. Matt Saltsgaver (ASU) def. Brendan Dempsey (GWU) 6-3, 7-5