Mississippi State
Arkansas
State Tennis Earns First Conference Win With 4-1 Victory Over Arkansas
March 14, 2010 | Men's Tennis
"It was good to get a win, but we are still not playing our best tennis," said head coach Per Nilsson. "I was glad to see the guys come out and fight today and win some key matches."
The win marked the second-straight by MSU over the Razorbacks, but was the first home victory against Arkansas since 2002. Arkansas fell to 8-6 on the season and 1-3 in the conference.
For the second-straight match and the seventh time this season, MSU claimed the doubles point. At the No. 2 spot State's tandem of Louis Cant and Chris Doerr won their second-straight match and third conference victory, claiming an 8-4 match over Arkansas' Matt Hogan and Nikolas Zogaj. Bulldog duo of George Coupland and Artem Ilyushin upset 26th-ranked Dmitry Lebedev and Chris Nott of the Hogs, 8-6 at the No. 1 position to clinch the doubles point for MSU. It was the second-straight match won by Coupland and Ilyushin, their third conference victory and are now 3-0 when facing ranked opponents. MState's team of Antonio Lastre and Daniel Sanchez were tied at six when play was suspended at the No. 2 slot against Razorbacks' Taylor King and Matt Walters.
MSU's senior Doerr helped the Maroon and White extend its lead to 2-0 with an identical-set victory over Arkansas' Walters, 6-2, 6-2, at the No. 6 spot. It was Doerr's third victory in four matches and his second conference win of the season.
Arkansas cut the lead to one at the No. 5 position, where MSU's Sanchez dropped his second-straight match, slipping up to the Hogs' Greg Lehmann, 6-3, 6-0.
At the No. 3 slot, MSU's 101st-ranked Coupland blanked Razorback Lebedev in the first set, 6-0, and trailed 4-2 in the second set before he rallied to win five of the next six games to take the set and the match, 7-5, and give the Bulldogs a 3-1 lead. The win was the second-straight match claimed by Coupland as he improved his conference ledger to 2-2.
State's Lastre clinched the match for the Maroon and White from the No. 4 position, with a victory over Zogaj of the Hogs. Lastre won the first set 6-4 and triumphed in the second set, 6-0, to give the Bulldogs the victory. The win snapped a three-match losing streak by Lastre and was also his first SEC win of the season. It was also the third time this season Lastre has clinched a match for MState.
Bulldogs' 100th-ranked Cant trailed Arkansas' No. 57 Nott at the No. 1 position, 7-5, 3-2, when play was suspended. Also, sophomore Ilyushin of State was down 7-6(0), 3-0, when play ended to Hogan of the Razorbacks at the No. 2 spot.
"We still have room for improvement," said Nilsson. "We have a big week on the road ahead of us and we have to continue to play better to continue winning."
MSU will return to the courts on Tuesday, Mar. 16, at Tampa, Fla., where the Bulldogs face the Bulls of South Florida in a 1 p.m. match.
#49 MISSISSIPPI STATE 4, #42 ARKANSAS 1
Starkville, Miss. - 3/14/10
DOUBLES
No. 1 - George Coupland/Artem Ilyushin (MSU) def. Dmitry Lebedev/Chris Nott (Arkansas) 8-6; No. 2 - Antonio Lastre/Daniel Sanchez (MSU) vs. Taylor King/Matt Walters (Arkansas) 6-6, susp.; No. 3 - Louis Cant/Chris Doerr (MSU) def. Matt Hogan/Nikolas Zogaj (Arkansas) 8-4; (Order of Finish: 3,1).
SINGLES
No. 1 - #100 Cant (MSU) vs. #57 Nott (Arkansas) 5-7, 2-3, susp.; No. 2 - Ilyushin (MSU) vs. Hogan (Arkansas) 6-7(0); 0-3, susp.; No. 3 - #101 Coupland (MSU) def. Lebedev (Arkansas) 6-0, 7-5; No. 4 - Lastre (MSU) def. Zogaj (Arkansas) 6-4, 6-0; No. 5 - Lehmann (Arkansas) def. Sanchez (MSU) 6-3, 6-0; No. 6 - Doerr (MSU) def. Walters (Arkansas) 6-2, 6-2; (Order of Finish: 6,5,3,4).
--www.mstateathletics.com--
Players Mentioned
