Saturday, January 21
San Diego, Calif.
6:00 PM
Mississippi State
5
at
2
San Diego State
Sophomore Strahinja Rakic won his doubles and singles matches to lead MSU.
No. 20 MSU Opens Season With 5-2 Win At SDSU
January 21, 2017 | Men's Tennis
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – In the season-opening match of 2017, the 20th-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (1-0) didn't disappoint as the Bulldogs won, 5-2, against host San Diego State (1-2) to cap their West Coast swing.
The weekend was a wet one overall, as inclement weather forced the cancelation of Friday's match against Pepperdine. The Bulldogs and Aztecs took percussions however on Saturday, as the two squads agreed to move the match from Sunday to Saturday afternoon.
"Even though we arrived in San Diego late last night, our team woke up this morning with a desire and eagerness to play today," head coach Matt Roberts said. "They wanted to play tennis after Friday's match was cancelled, so we found a way to get the match in today."
The Bulldogs jumped out to an early advantage in doubles play as the duo of Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic cruised to a 6-0 win over SDSU's Joel Popov and Nicholas Mitchell. Following Borges and Rakic's lead, the formidable senior tandem of Mate Cutura and Vaughn Hunter clinched the doubles point for MSU after defeating Marko Goles-Babic and Sander Gjoels-Andersen, 6-2. No. 59 Niclas Braun and Trevor Foshey's match was suspended at 4-4 after the clinch.
"Our play today in doubles was very smooth," Roberts said. "We got out to a good start and that kept the momentum going into singles play."
In singles play, the Bulldogs would get another fast finish from Rakic as the sophomore took care of business, 6-2, 6-2, and earned MSU's second point of the afternoon. The singles victory over Gjoels-Anderson for Rakic was his first career win at the No. 3 spot.
With a 2-0 lead at hand, State's top singles player, sixth-ranked Borges, would pick up where he left off in the fall by claiming a straight-set win against Goles-Babic, 7-6(3), 6-2. The win for Borges improved his team-best singles record as the sophomore now has a 13-3 overall record in singles play for 2016-17.
On the doorstep of the team's first win of the season, sophomore Niclas Braun earned the match-clinching point as the Bulldog won in straight-sets in his familiar No. 4 spot in the singles lineup. The Bulldog downed Joel Popov, 6-2, 7-6(4) for his third overall singles victory of 2016-17.
Only three matches remained after MSU clinched the win, as the Aztecs grabbed two points following a Cutura and Foshey loss at the No. 2 and No. 6 spots. The Bulldogs would get their final point of the day from freshman Simon Baudry, who performed admirably in his first collegiate match of his career.
"Simon had to fight back today, but he figured it out and I'm proud of how he competed," Roberts said. "Even though this was his first match as a collegiate player, he showed a lot of heart and fight and truly loved the challenge out there today. He was very impressive."
Baudry fought back from a 0-3 hole in his opening set, but stormed back to take the first set after forcing a tiebreaker, 7-6(1). The Bordeaux, France native won the following set, 6-4, to close out the match against Santiago Cevallos and bring the final score to 5-2.
Up Next
The Bulldogs will venture to Lubbock, Texas next weekend for the 2017 ITA Kickoff Weekend. The Maroon and White faces Florida State on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 12 p.m. CT, before taking on the winner of Iowa and host Texas Tech on Sunday also at 12 p.m. CT.
Additional Notes
Social Media
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 20 Mississippi State 5, San Diego State 2
Aztec Tennis Center
San Diego, Calif.
Jan. 21, 2017
Doubles
1. Mate Cutura/Vaughn Hunter (MSU) def. Marko Goles-Babic/Sander Gjoels-Andersen (SDSU), 6-2
2. Santiago Cevallos/Milen Ianaklev (SDSU) vs. Niclas Braun/Trevor Foshey (MSU), 4-4, DNF
3. Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. Joel Popov/Nicholas Mitchell (SDSU), 6-0
Order of finish: 3, 1
MSU wins doubles point
Singles
1. No. 6 Nuno Borges (MSU) def. Marko Goles-Babic (SDSU), 7-6(3), 6-2
2. Milen Ianakiev (SDSU) def. Mate Cutura (MSU), 7-5, 7-6(2)
3. Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. Sander Gjoels-Anderson (SDSU), 6-2, 6-2
4. Niclas Braun (MSU) def. Joel Popov (SDSU), 6-2, 7-6(4)
5. Simon Baudry (MSU) def. Santiago Cevallos (SDSU), 7-6(1), 6-4
6. Rafael Gonzalez Almazan (SDSU) def. Trevor Foshey (MSU), 6-4, 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 1, 6, 4*, 2, 5
*Match-clinching victory
The weekend was a wet one overall, as inclement weather forced the cancelation of Friday's match against Pepperdine. The Bulldogs and Aztecs took percussions however on Saturday, as the two squads agreed to move the match from Sunday to Saturday afternoon.
"Even though we arrived in San Diego late last night, our team woke up this morning with a desire and eagerness to play today," head coach Matt Roberts said. "They wanted to play tennis after Friday's match was cancelled, so we found a way to get the match in today."
The Bulldogs jumped out to an early advantage in doubles play as the duo of Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic cruised to a 6-0 win over SDSU's Joel Popov and Nicholas Mitchell. Following Borges and Rakic's lead, the formidable senior tandem of Mate Cutura and Vaughn Hunter clinched the doubles point for MSU after defeating Marko Goles-Babic and Sander Gjoels-Andersen, 6-2. No. 59 Niclas Braun and Trevor Foshey's match was suspended at 4-4 after the clinch.
"Our play today in doubles was very smooth," Roberts said. "We got out to a good start and that kept the momentum going into singles play."
In singles play, the Bulldogs would get another fast finish from Rakic as the sophomore took care of business, 6-2, 6-2, and earned MSU's second point of the afternoon. The singles victory over Gjoels-Anderson for Rakic was his first career win at the No. 3 spot.
With a 2-0 lead at hand, State's top singles player, sixth-ranked Borges, would pick up where he left off in the fall by claiming a straight-set win against Goles-Babic, 7-6(3), 6-2. The win for Borges improved his team-best singles record as the sophomore now has a 13-3 overall record in singles play for 2016-17.
On the doorstep of the team's first win of the season, sophomore Niclas Braun earned the match-clinching point as the Bulldog won in straight-sets in his familiar No. 4 spot in the singles lineup. The Bulldog downed Joel Popov, 6-2, 7-6(4) for his third overall singles victory of 2016-17.
Only three matches remained after MSU clinched the win, as the Aztecs grabbed two points following a Cutura and Foshey loss at the No. 2 and No. 6 spots. The Bulldogs would get their final point of the day from freshman Simon Baudry, who performed admirably in his first collegiate match of his career.
"Simon had to fight back today, but he figured it out and I'm proud of how he competed," Roberts said. "Even though this was his first match as a collegiate player, he showed a lot of heart and fight and truly loved the challenge out there today. He was very impressive."
Baudry fought back from a 0-3 hole in his opening set, but stormed back to take the first set after forcing a tiebreaker, 7-6(1). The Bordeaux, France native won the following set, 6-4, to close out the match against Santiago Cevallos and bring the final score to 5-2.
Up Next
The Bulldogs will venture to Lubbock, Texas next weekend for the 2017 ITA Kickoff Weekend. The Maroon and White faces Florida State on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 12 p.m. CT, before taking on the winner of Iowa and host Texas Tech on Sunday also at 12 p.m. CT.
Additional Notes
- Saturday's match between MSU and SDSU was the first in the series history between the two tennis programs
- The Bulldogs are now 2-1 in season-openers under head coach Matt Roberts
- Sophomore Strahinja Rakic is second on the team in overall singles wins this season after earning his sixth win on Saturday
- Nuno Borges is undefeated at the No. 1 singles spot for MSU after earning a 2-0 mark last season and beginning this year 1-0
- The pair of Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic is now 4-2 for 2016-17
Social Media
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 20 Mississippi State 5, San Diego State 2
Aztec Tennis Center
San Diego, Calif.
Jan. 21, 2017
Doubles
1. Mate Cutura/Vaughn Hunter (MSU) def. Marko Goles-Babic/Sander Gjoels-Andersen (SDSU), 6-2
2. Santiago Cevallos/Milen Ianaklev (SDSU) vs. Niclas Braun/Trevor Foshey (MSU), 4-4, DNF
3. Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. Joel Popov/Nicholas Mitchell (SDSU), 6-0
Order of finish: 3, 1
MSU wins doubles point
Singles
1. No. 6 Nuno Borges (MSU) def. Marko Goles-Babic (SDSU), 7-6(3), 6-2
2. Milen Ianakiev (SDSU) def. Mate Cutura (MSU), 7-5, 7-6(2)
3. Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. Sander Gjoels-Anderson (SDSU), 6-2, 6-2
4. Niclas Braun (MSU) def. Joel Popov (SDSU), 6-2, 7-6(4)
5. Simon Baudry (MSU) def. Santiago Cevallos (SDSU), 7-6(1), 6-4
6. Rafael Gonzalez Almazan (SDSU) def. Trevor Foshey (MSU), 6-4, 6-2
Order of finish: 3, 1, 6, 4*, 2, 5
*Match-clinching victory
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Tennis
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