MSU?s Borges Named SEC Men?s Tennis Freshman of the Week
March 30, 2016 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – After a 3-1 weekend on the singles and doubles court, Mississippi State men's tennis freshman Nuno Borges has been named the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week, the league announced Wednesday.
The freshman earned two ranked wins in singles and doubles action against No. 16 Florida, while picking up a win in singles against No. 52 Auburn.
“Nuno has put in hard work all season long since getting to campus in January and he is very deserving of this honor,” head coach Matt Roberts said. “He is playing mature and has been a steady rock for us this season at the No. 3 position. We have very talented freshmen on our roster and this recognition is just one indicator that they are growing and developing their games in the right direction.”
Borges is now the second Bulldog this year to earn SEC Freshman of the Week honors, with Niclas Braun earning the distinction twice this season.
The Maia, Portugal, native is currently on a three-match winning streak in singles, while sporting a 13-2 record in dual-match play and a 6-2 mark in conference.
In Friday's match against the Gators, Borges and doubles partner Niclas Braun knocked off UF's 52nd-ranked pair of Maxx Lipman and Elliot Orkin, 6-1. After dropping the opening set in singles, Borges stormed back to defeat UF's No. 122 Alfredo Perez 0-6, 6-2, 6-3 to earn another ranked win.
In the weekend's finale against No. 52 Auburn, Borges and partner Braun narrowly fell to Auburn's Conner Huertas and Dante Saleh, 7-6(5) to close out doubles play. Borges bounced back in singles to defeat Saleh for retribution, winning 6-3, 6-0 to propel MSU to a 4-2 win against the Tigers.
Borges and the 25th-ranked Bulldogs travel to Oxford and Fayetteville this weekend to face Ole Miss and Arkansas to continue SEC play.
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