Bulldog Tennis Gives Another Solid Effort, Falls To No. 4 Georgia 5-2

Sunday, March 8

Starkville

1:00 PM

Mississippi State

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MSU Men's Tennis Falls In Opening Round Of SEC Tournament To Host Auburn

Bulldog Tennis Gives Another Solid Effort, Falls To No. 4 Georgia 5-2

March 08, 2009 | Men's Tennis

By: hailstate.com

STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Mississippi State men's tennis team fell behind early against the fourth-ranked Georgia Bulldogs Sunday and, despite a late charge, were not able to make up the ground needed to recover, ultimately falling 5-2 to the two-time defending national champion.

With the loss MSU fell to 4-4 on the season and 0-2 in conference play. UGA improved to 12-2, 1-1.

Georgia started out strong by sweeping doubles, but not without a couple of tight decisions. UGA was led by the 12th-rannked duo of Jamie Hunt and Nate Schnugg taking down MSU's Chris Doerr and Tanner Stump 8-2 at the No. 1 position. The Bulldogs from Georgia clinched the doubles point at the No. 3 spot with Josh Varela and Christian Vitulli beating State's rookie duo Artem Ilyushin and Louis Cant in a close affair, 8-6. UGA's tandem of Drake Bernstein and Javier Garrapiz completed the sweep with a tiebreak win over Bulldogs' Antonio Lastre and Daniel Sanchez, 8-7(7). It was the first time the duo of Lastre and Sanchez had fallen this season, and the first doubles point State had dropped in five matches.

UGA took control in singles winning the first two matches to go up 3-0. Hunt, ranked 60th, took down the MSU freshman Sanchez at No. 2 in a two-set outing, 6-2, 6-2. MState's 118th-ranked senior Ryan Farlow jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening set over UGA's No. 7 ranked Schnugg at the No. 1 spot, but eventually dropped the match, 6-4, 6-1.

Despite the big Georgia lead at that point, State was giving UGA a strong challenge on the other four courts, sending three of them to third sets.

State's junior Doerr would put the Bulldogs on the board with his win at the No. 6 position over Georgia's Vitulli, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, with Doerr claiming seven of the last eight games in the match.

But Georgia got the clinching point it needed at the No. 5 spot when Varela held off MSU's Cant in a three-set bout, 6-1, 4-6, 6-3. Garrapiz, 84th-ranked, won the match at No. 3 over the Bulldog freshman Ilyushin, 7-5, 6-2. UGA defaulted the final match on court No. 4 with MSU's Lastre leading 3-1 in the third set over Bernstein.

“It was a hard-fought match,” said head coach Per Nilsson. “Dropping the point in doubles hurt us, but we started out slow in singles and, against a team like Georgia, that is difficult to overcome. We are now looking forward to next weekend's matches where we will play two more very formidable opponents.”

State will look to rebound this upcoming weekend when MSU travels to 26th-ranked Auburn on Friday and No. 20 Alabama Sunday.

#4 GEORGIA 5, MISSISSIPPI STATE 2
3/08/09 ? Starkville, Miss.

DOUBLES ? #12 Jamie Hunt/Nate Schnugg (UGA) def. Chris Doerr/Tanner Stump (MSU) 8-2; Drake Bernstein/Javier Garrapiz (UGA) def. Antonio Lastre/Daniel Sanchez (MSU) 8-7(7); Josh Varela/Christian Vitulli (UGA) def. Louis Cant/Artem Ilyushin (MSU) 8-6.

SINGLES ? #7 Schnugg (UGA) def. #118 Ryan Farlow (MSU) 6-4, 6-1; #60 Hunt (UGA) def. Sanchez (MSU) 6-2, 6-2; #84 Garrapiz (UGA) def. Ilyushin (MSU) 7-5, 6-2; Lastre (MSU) def. Bernstein (UGA) 2-6, 7-6(4), 3-1, ret.; Varela (UGA) def. Cant (MSU) 6-1, 4-6, 6-3; Doerr (MSU) def. Vitulli (UGA) 2-6, 6-4, 6-1.