Sunday, January 28
Stillwater, Okla.
1:00 PM
Mississippi State
1
at
4
Oklahoma State
State dropped its first match of the season on Sunday in the ITA Kick-Off championship match at No. 14 Oklahoma State.
Photo by: Blake Williams/MSU Athletics
No. 13 MSU Men's Tennis Falls 4-1 At No. 14 Oklahoma State In ITA Kick-Off
January 28, 2018 | Men's Tennis
STILLWATER, Okla. – Momentum was a big player in a top-15 match between 13th-ranked Mississippi State and No. 14 Oklahoma State on Sunday in the ITA Kick-Off Weekend championship match on the OSU campus.
The Bulldogs (4-1) earned the doubles point after competing in three close matches, but the Cowboys (6-0) took control of early momentum in singles to rally and notch a 4-1 decision against MSU.
"We just didn't come out tough enough playing against a top-20 team at their place," head coach Matt Roberts said. "Give Oklahoma State credit, they took advantage of early momentum. We can't go down in that many first sets and let them front-run. We made them feel too comfortable in the first 30 minutes. We'll learn from it moving forward. We got stung today and it doesn't feel good, so we'll remember that feeling moving forward into the rest of the season."
State started off the day strong by claiming the doubles point. Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic gave MSU the early advantage by taking a 6-3 win on court 2. The Cowboys evened it up soon after when Brady Draheim and Jurence Mendoza posted a 6-4 decision over MSU's No. 41 Florian Broska and Giovanni Oradini at No. 3.
Court 1 featured a thrilling back-and-forth contest, with MSU's 49th-ranked tandem of Niclas Braun and Trevor Foshey overcoming three deficits and eventually taking a 5-4 lead to go on to clinch the doubles point for the Bulldogs with a 6-4 victory against OSU's Julian Cash and Luke Hammond and put State up 1-0 early.
"I was very happy with how we improved in doubles and how we have continued to get better with our film review," Roberts said. "We have worked very hard on our doubles situations and we saw some better doubles today. To see Nic and Trevor get the win for us in doubles was a great, positive moment for us moving forward."
In singles action, the Bulldogs and Cowboys battled all afternoon, but OSU took advantage of winning five first sets to open and rode that momentum to the victory. The Cowboys earned straight-set wins on courts 3, 4, 5 and 6 to earn the win.
Tying the contest at 1-1 was Cowboy Jurence Mendoza, who claimed a 6-1, 6-2 triumph at No. 5 over MSU's Broska. OSU's Artur Dubinski followed with a 6-1, 6-4 win on court 4, upending MSU's 54th-ranked Rakic. Luke Hammond gave OSU a 3-1 lead, holding off MSU's Foshey in a tight match at No. 6 6-4, 6-4. The clincher would come at No. 4, where 93rd-ranked Cowboy Mathieu Scaglia edged State's 118th-ranked Braun in a fierce battle 7-6(4), 6-4.
The remaining matches at the top two spots in the lineup were both suspended in the third set at that point. State's third-ranked Borges had just claimed the first game of his match with Cowboy Julian Cash at No. 1. Court 2's match featuring 29th-ranked Bulldog Oradini and OSU's Tristan Meraut saw Meraut holding a 2-1 third-set lead. Borges' streak without a loss continued despite dropping the second set against Cash.
In the series against Oklahoma State, the Bulldogs are now 1-2. In ITA Kick-Off Weekend play, State is now 11-7 all-time.
Next Up For MSU…
After returning home from Stillwater, the Bulldogs have some time to prepare for a pair of home matches in February. State will welcome San Diego State at 1 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 9, before hosting Pepperdine at noon on Sunday, Feb. 11.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 14 Oklahoma State 4, No. 13 Mississippi State 1
Michael & Anne Greenwood Tennis Center
Stillwater, Okla.
Jan. 28, 2018
Doubles
1. #49 Niclas Braun/Trevor Foshey (MSU) def. Julian Cash/Luke Hammond (OSU) 6-4
2. Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. Artur Dubinski/Leftherios Theodorou (OSU) 6-3
3. Brady Draheim/Jurence Mendoza (OSU) def. #41 Florian Broska/Giovanni Oradini (MSU) 6-4
Order of finish: 2, 3, 1
Singles
1. #3 Nuno Borges (MSU) vs. Julian Cash (OSU) 6-4, 6-7(2), 1-0 (susp.)
2. #29 Giovanni Oradini (MSU) vs. Tristan Meraut (OSU) 3-6, 6-3, 1-2 (susp.)
3. Artur Dubinski (OSU) def. #54 Strahinja Rakic (MSU) 6-1, 6-4
4. #93 Mathieu Scaglia (OSU) def. #118 Niclas Braun (MSU) 7-6(4), 6-4
5. Jurence Mendoza (OSU) def. Florian Broska (MSU) 6-1, 6-2
6. Luke Hammond (OSU) def. Trevor Foshey (MSU) 6-4, 6-4
Order of finish: 5, 3, 6, 4
The Bulldogs (4-1) earned the doubles point after competing in three close matches, but the Cowboys (6-0) took control of early momentum in singles to rally and notch a 4-1 decision against MSU.
"We just didn't come out tough enough playing against a top-20 team at their place," head coach Matt Roberts said. "Give Oklahoma State credit, they took advantage of early momentum. We can't go down in that many first sets and let them front-run. We made them feel too comfortable in the first 30 minutes. We'll learn from it moving forward. We got stung today and it doesn't feel good, so we'll remember that feeling moving forward into the rest of the season."
State started off the day strong by claiming the doubles point. Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic gave MSU the early advantage by taking a 6-3 win on court 2. The Cowboys evened it up soon after when Brady Draheim and Jurence Mendoza posted a 6-4 decision over MSU's No. 41 Florian Broska and Giovanni Oradini at No. 3.
Court 1 featured a thrilling back-and-forth contest, with MSU's 49th-ranked tandem of Niclas Braun and Trevor Foshey overcoming three deficits and eventually taking a 5-4 lead to go on to clinch the doubles point for the Bulldogs with a 6-4 victory against OSU's Julian Cash and Luke Hammond and put State up 1-0 early.
"I was very happy with how we improved in doubles and how we have continued to get better with our film review," Roberts said. "We have worked very hard on our doubles situations and we saw some better doubles today. To see Nic and Trevor get the win for us in doubles was a great, positive moment for us moving forward."
In singles action, the Bulldogs and Cowboys battled all afternoon, but OSU took advantage of winning five first sets to open and rode that momentum to the victory. The Cowboys earned straight-set wins on courts 3, 4, 5 and 6 to earn the win.
Tying the contest at 1-1 was Cowboy Jurence Mendoza, who claimed a 6-1, 6-2 triumph at No. 5 over MSU's Broska. OSU's Artur Dubinski followed with a 6-1, 6-4 win on court 4, upending MSU's 54th-ranked Rakic. Luke Hammond gave OSU a 3-1 lead, holding off MSU's Foshey in a tight match at No. 6 6-4, 6-4. The clincher would come at No. 4, where 93rd-ranked Cowboy Mathieu Scaglia edged State's 118th-ranked Braun in a fierce battle 7-6(4), 6-4.
The remaining matches at the top two spots in the lineup were both suspended in the third set at that point. State's third-ranked Borges had just claimed the first game of his match with Cowboy Julian Cash at No. 1. Court 2's match featuring 29th-ranked Bulldog Oradini and OSU's Tristan Meraut saw Meraut holding a 2-1 third-set lead. Borges' streak without a loss continued despite dropping the second set against Cash.
In the series against Oklahoma State, the Bulldogs are now 1-2. In ITA Kick-Off Weekend play, State is now 11-7 all-time.
Next Up For MSU…
After returning home from Stillwater, the Bulldogs have some time to prepare for a pair of home matches in February. State will welcome San Diego State at 1 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 9, before hosting Pepperdine at noon on Sunday, Feb. 11.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 14 Oklahoma State 4, No. 13 Mississippi State 1
Michael & Anne Greenwood Tennis Center
Stillwater, Okla.
Jan. 28, 2018
Doubles
1. #49 Niclas Braun/Trevor Foshey (MSU) def. Julian Cash/Luke Hammond (OSU) 6-4
2. Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. Artur Dubinski/Leftherios Theodorou (OSU) 6-3
3. Brady Draheim/Jurence Mendoza (OSU) def. #41 Florian Broska/Giovanni Oradini (MSU) 6-4
Order of finish: 2, 3, 1
Singles
1. #3 Nuno Borges (MSU) vs. Julian Cash (OSU) 6-4, 6-7(2), 1-0 (susp.)
2. #29 Giovanni Oradini (MSU) vs. Tristan Meraut (OSU) 3-6, 6-3, 1-2 (susp.)
3. Artur Dubinski (OSU) def. #54 Strahinja Rakic (MSU) 6-1, 6-4
4. #93 Mathieu Scaglia (OSU) def. #118 Niclas Braun (MSU) 7-6(4), 6-4
5. Jurence Mendoza (OSU) def. Florian Broska (MSU) 6-1, 6-2
6. Luke Hammond (OSU) def. Trevor Foshey (MSU) 6-4, 6-4
Order of finish: 5, 3, 6, 4
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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