MSU Continues Homestand With Saturday Doubleheader Against Samford And Alabama State
February 05, 2016 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – After a weekend that saw the Bulldogs go 3-0 at the friendly confines of the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, the 29th-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (3-2) stays home this Saturday as it faces Samford (1-1) and Alabama State (0-0) at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. CT.
“We are excited to stay at home this weekend and get to play a couple of matches in front of our home crowd,” head coach Matt Roberts said. “We improved and continued to better our game last weekend and that's what I am looking forward to this weekend against two competitive opponents.”
Due to the current construction project at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre and MSU Softball Complex, fans attending this weekend's matches are asked to enter the tennis stadium via the west side (sidewalk adjacent to the Mike Sanders Track Complex). The east side stairwell will not be accessible this weekend.
Last weekend the Maroon and White defeated No. 72 UNC Wilmington, 4-3, on Saturday for their first win of the season. The Bulldogs blanked George Washington and Alcorn State, 4-0 and 7-0, on Sunday to cap the weekend sweep.
One of the highlights from last weekend was the play of freshman Niclas Braun, who garnered SEC Freshman of the Week honors after going a combined 6-0 in singles and doubles. Along with fellow freshman Nuno Borges, the pair improved their doubles record to 4-1 on the season to anchor the Bulldogs doubles lineup.
Junior Rishab Agarwal also had a tremendous outing on the courts last weekend, after going a combined 5-0 in singles and doubles play. The junior owns the best dual-match record so far this season for MSU at 4-1.
Saturday's 11 a.m. match will pit two Bulldogs against one another in MSU and Samford. The Bulldogs of Samford are 1-1 on the season, with a win against Kennesaw State and a loss to Alabama. State holds a 12-3 record against Samford, with its last win coming last year in Starkville after MSU won 4-0.
The Saturday afternoon cap will feature the Bulldogs taking on visiting Alabama State. The Hornets from Montgomery, Ala., have not played a match this spring. MSU is 2-0 against ASU with its last win coming last season as well by the way of a 4-0 win in Starkville.
After this weekend's Saturday doubleheader, the Bulldogs will continue their homestand at A.J. Pitts with another Saturday twin bill on Feb. 13, against UAB and Morehead State at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. CT.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow “HailStateMT” on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
