Mississippi State
Vanderbilt
State Netmen Advance To Quarters Of SEC Tournament With Shut Out Of Vanderbilt
April 19, 2007 | Men's Tennis
State jumped on the scoreboard early against Vanderbilt Thursday, taking the doubles point after winning two of three matches. After MSU's freshman duo of Artem Kuznetsov and Pjotrs Necajevs lost an 8-1 decision to VU's Nik Cromydas and Evan Dufaux at No. 2, the Bulldogs responded by winning the final two contests. On court #3, Bulldogs Chris Doerr and Ryan Farlow outlasted Commodores Andy Mack and Jordan Magarik 8-5. With the decisive match coming down to court #1, the 36th-ranked duo of MSU veterans Ivan Bjelica and Philippe Frayssinoux topped Vanderbilt's pair of Ryan Preston and Vijay Paul 8-3, clinching the opening point for the Bulldogs.
State opened up their lead when singles began, winning the first set on four courts. The first match complete saw the MSU rookie Kuznetsov ease by VU's Dufaux 6-1, 6-2 on court #3, which gave State a 2-0 advantage. State then went up 3-0 when the freshman Doerr downed Vanderbilt's Mack 6-2, 6-2 on court #5.
While MSU seemed to be in grasp of clinching the win at that point, Vanderbilt began to fight back and close the gap. Things tightended considerably as the match progressed, as the last four matches on court all went to third sets.
But State would get the win it needed on court #6. There, VU's Nathan Sachs had won the first set 6-4 over MSU's Necajevs. The second set saw Necajevs battle back to force a third set with a 6-3 victory in the second. In the third, Sachs looked to be in control with a 4-1 lead, but the State rookie stormed back to win the final five games for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory and clinch the team win for State.
After the Bulldogs had clinched, the three remaining matches were suspended. On court #1, MSU's 39th-ranked Bjelica led VU's 60th-ranked Preston 7-5, 2-6, 2-1. On court #2, MSU's 55th-ranked Frayssinoux trailed Vandy's Cromydas early in the third set 6-7, 6-0, 1-0 while on court #4, State's Ryan Farlow was down 6-2, 4-6, 4-2 to VU's Paul.
With Thursday's win, State improved to 20-16 overall at the SEC Tournament. It also marked the 15th time in the event's 18 years of existence that the Bulldogs have made the quarterfinals or better. MSU moved to 4-0 all time against Vanderbilt in SEC Championship play.
On Friday, State will matchup with a Georgia team that has posted a 23-0 record this season, including an 11-0 mark in SEC play. Georgia add to its strong tennis history this year with a second-straight SEC crown after finishing last season as the NCAA runner-up. In the team's meeting earlier this season, Georgia topped MSU 7-0 in Athens, Ga. The teams also met in last year's SEC Championship, in the semis, with UGA downing State 4-0. With a memorable run, MSU had become the first #12 seed in tournament history to reach the SEC semis to set that matchup.
#65 MISSISSIPPI STATE 4, #37 VANDERBILT 0
2007 SEC Championship - First Round
Baton Rouge, La. - 4/19/07
DOUBLES - Ivan Bjelica/Philippe Frayssinoux (MSU) def. Ryan Preston/Vijay Paul (VU) 8-3; Nik Cromydas/Evan Dufaux (VU) def. Artem Kuznetsov/Pjotrs Necajevs (MSU) 8-1; Chris Doerr/Ryan Farlow (MSU) def. Andy Mack/Jordan Magarik (VU) 8-5.
SINGLES - #39 Bjelica (MSU) vs. #60 Preston (VU) 7-5, 2-6, 2-1, susp.; #55 Frayssinoux (MSU) vs. Cromydas (VU) 7-6, 0-6, 0-1, susp.; Kuznetsov (MSU) def. Dufaux (VU) 6-1, 6-2; Farlow (MSU) vs. Paul (VU) 2-6, 6-4, 2-4, susp.; Doerr (MSU) def. Mack (VU) 6-2, 6-2; Necajevs (MSU) def. Nathan Sachs (VU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
(numbers preceding names are current national rankings)
Players Mentioned
