Thursday, March 30
Starkville
3:00 PM
Mississippi State
vs
Georgia
SEC-leading Georgia visits Starkville on Thursday at 3 p.m. CT.
Top-20 Battle Of Bulldogs Set For Thursday At A.J. Pitts
March 29, 2017 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – The 17th-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (14-4, 5-1 SEC) continues its homestand on Thursday as the Maroon and White welcomes 14th-ranked Georgia (11-6, 7-0 SEC) to the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre at 3 p.m. CT.
Thursday's match will the first of a pair of home contests for MSU this weekend as the Bulldogs face Tennessee on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT to continue the homestand.
"We're excited to face a top-notch opponent on Thursday and our guys are ready for the challenge," head coach Matt Roberts said. "We had a great crowd last weekend, so we're expecting our loyal fans to show up and give us energy once again on Thursday. The match will be college tennis at its best, so this one will be fun to watch."
Last time out, a fierce battle between MSU and Ole Miss resulted in the Rebels escaping A.J. Pitts with a 4-2 win to snap State's 10-match win streak. Before the contest, the Bulldogs had been undefeated in conference play and at home this season as the hot streak came to a close.
Who To Watch For MSU
In the defeat, No. 8 Nuno Borges and Niclas Braun continued their stellar play in singles action as the Bulldogs each picked up straight-set wins. The victory for Borges marked his 14th ranked win of the season in singles play as the sophomore downed No. 38 Gustav Hansson, 6-1, 6-3. Braun barely broke a sweat against his Rebel, as the Berlin native won, 6-0, 6-1.
On Thursday, the Bulldogs will go with the same doubles lineup it used last weekend as No. 31 Braun and Trevor Foshey lead the top of the order, with seniors Mate Cutura and Vaughn Hunter at No. 2 followed by Borges and Giovanni Oradini at No. 3. In singles play, the lineup will be familiar for the most part with a slight reshuffle. No. 8 Borges is locked in to his top spot, with Cutura, Rakic, Braun, Oradini and Foshey to follow.
Previewing The Bulldogs From Athens
Georgia has won eight out of its last nine matches, with the only defeat coming at the hands of top-ranked Wake Forest, 4-3. The Bulldogs from Athens are perfect in conference play as UGA routed Alabama at home last time out, 7-0.
Who To Watch For UGA
Freshmen Nathan Ponwith and Robert Loeb have been equally impressive this season as each Bulldog has won the SEC Freshman of the Week honor twice this year with Ponwith taking home the honor this week. Loeb and partner Jan Zielinski make up the No. 8 doubles team in the country, while Ponwith and Emil Reinberg rank No. 48 in the nation. In singles action, the pair of freshmen are unranked but Ponwith has moved up to the No. 1 position for UGA in the past week, going 2-0.
Up Next
The Bulldogs will continue their five-match homestand against Tennessee on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT before closing out the home season against Texas A&M and LSU next weekend.
Thursday's Promotions
Admission
Admission to Thursday's match at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Center is free to all.
Live Video/Stats
For all home matches at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, live video and statistics will be made available at www.hailstate.com/livemt.
Additional Notes
Social Media
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Thursday's match will the first of a pair of home contests for MSU this weekend as the Bulldogs face Tennessee on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT to continue the homestand.
"We're excited to face a top-notch opponent on Thursday and our guys are ready for the challenge," head coach Matt Roberts said. "We had a great crowd last weekend, so we're expecting our loyal fans to show up and give us energy once again on Thursday. The match will be college tennis at its best, so this one will be fun to watch."
Last time out, a fierce battle between MSU and Ole Miss resulted in the Rebels escaping A.J. Pitts with a 4-2 win to snap State's 10-match win streak. Before the contest, the Bulldogs had been undefeated in conference play and at home this season as the hot streak came to a close.
Who To Watch For MSU
In the defeat, No. 8 Nuno Borges and Niclas Braun continued their stellar play in singles action as the Bulldogs each picked up straight-set wins. The victory for Borges marked his 14th ranked win of the season in singles play as the sophomore downed No. 38 Gustav Hansson, 6-1, 6-3. Braun barely broke a sweat against his Rebel, as the Berlin native won, 6-0, 6-1.
On Thursday, the Bulldogs will go with the same doubles lineup it used last weekend as No. 31 Braun and Trevor Foshey lead the top of the order, with seniors Mate Cutura and Vaughn Hunter at No. 2 followed by Borges and Giovanni Oradini at No. 3. In singles play, the lineup will be familiar for the most part with a slight reshuffle. No. 8 Borges is locked in to his top spot, with Cutura, Rakic, Braun, Oradini and Foshey to follow.
Previewing The Bulldogs From Athens
Georgia has won eight out of its last nine matches, with the only defeat coming at the hands of top-ranked Wake Forest, 4-3. The Bulldogs from Athens are perfect in conference play as UGA routed Alabama at home last time out, 7-0.
Who To Watch For UGA
Freshmen Nathan Ponwith and Robert Loeb have been equally impressive this season as each Bulldog has won the SEC Freshman of the Week honor twice this year with Ponwith taking home the honor this week. Loeb and partner Jan Zielinski make up the No. 8 doubles team in the country, while Ponwith and Emil Reinberg rank No. 48 in the nation. In singles action, the pair of freshmen are unranked but Ponwith has moved up to the No. 1 position for UGA in the past week, going 2-0.
Up Next
The Bulldogs will continue their five-match homestand against Tennessee on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT before closing out the home season against Texas A&M and LSU next weekend.
Thursday's Promotions
- Free poster
- Free program
- Tennis ball toss for a free TV
- 100 free t-shirts
- "International Student Day"
Admission
Admission to Thursday's match at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Center is free to all.
Live Video/Stats
For all home matches at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, live video and statistics will be made available at www.hailstate.com/livemt.
Additional Notes
- Georgia leads the all-time series 54-8
- MSU won the last meeting in Starkville, 4-2
- Before 2015, the lone home win against UGA came in 1993
- Thursday's contest will be MSU's 10th match against a ranked opponent this season
- The 5-1 start in SEC play for State is its best since 2012
- No. 8 Nuno Borges leads the Bulldogs in singles play with a 24-5 record overall
- Borges earned his 19th career ranked win in singles play
- Niclas Braun leads MSU with a 10-match win streak in singles play
Social Media
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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