No. 15 Bulldog Tennis Travels To Tuscaloosa To Face No. 38 Alabama Friday

Friday, March 16

Tuscaloosa, Al.

6:00 PM

Mississippi State

Alabama

The Bulldogs face their first SEC road test of the year on Friday night at Alabama.

No. 15 Bulldog Tennis Travels To Tuscaloosa To Face No. 38 Alabama Friday

March 15, 2018 | Men's Tennis

Live Video (if outdoors)Live Stats

STARKVILLE, Miss. – After a 3-0 start at home to open Southeastern Conference play, the 15th-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (9-1, 3-0 SEC) is set to face its first road test of the always-challenging league slate on Friday.

The Bulldogs do not have to venture very far for their first road match of conference action, as they take a short trip across the state line to Tuscaloosa to face No. 38 Alabama (14-4, 0-3) at 6 p.m. at the Alabama Tennis Complex.

"Alabama has a solid team and is in the top 40," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "This match is on the road at 6 p.m., so we expect a battle and a good crowd. Our guys are ready to compete and continue their development that we have been focusing on."

Oradini Named Player Of The Week…

On Wednesday, sophomore Giovanni Oradini captured SEC Player of the Week honors after going 4-0 on the weekend in MSU wins against No. 9 Florida and No. 28 South Carolina. The Rovereto, Italy, native highlighted his weekend with a pair of top-12 wins against the Gators. In doubles, he teamed up with Niclas Braun to down 12th-ranked McClain Kessler and Duarte Vale, while he earned the highest-ranked singles win of his career with a straight-set victory over No. 6 Gator Johannes Ingildsen.

Last Time Out For MSU…

The last time the Bulldogs took the court, they moved to 3-0 in SEC play with a 4-1 rain-plagued victory against No. 28 South Carolina. The Bulldogs began by taking the doubles point on courts 2 and 3. USC got a quick advantage by taking a 6-1 win on court 1 against Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic. Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini then continued their hot streak with a win against SC's Paul Jubb and Thomas Mayronne. On court 3, the Bulldogs earned the clincher when 59th-ranked Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey downed the Gamecock tandem of Wood Benton and Harrison O'Keefe. State led 1-0 at the break.

In singles, State's 82nd-ranked Rakic moved back into the win column with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Yancy Dennis at the No. 3 position. MSU's fourth-ranked Borges then extended his career-long win streak to 15 matches with a 6-3, 6-2 triumph against No. 29 Gabriel Friedrich on court 1. The Gamecocks earned their lone point of the afternoon when O'Keefe earned a tight 6-3, 6-4 win against Broska on court 5. MSU's 23rd-ranked Oradini then capped off his banner weekend with a 6-4, 6-3 win on court 2 against Jubb, clinching the victory for MSU and ending the dual match. Braun (court 4) and Foshey (court 6) were both up a set when their matches were suspended.

MSU In The ITA Rankings…

In this week's Intercollegiate Tennis Association team rankings, MSU jumped back into the top 15 of the Oracle ITA team rankings on March 13, checking in at 15th nationally. Six Bulldogs made the cut in the most recent singles and doubles rankings that were released on March 6. Borges led the way, being ranked fourth nationally in singles, followed by Oradini, who came in at No. 23. Rakic rounded out the ranked Bulldogs in singles at 82nd. Borges' No. 4 ranking currently makes him the top-ranked player in the SEC. In doubles, Broska and Foshey checked in at No. 59, while Braun and Foshey checked back into the rankings at No. 71.

About Alabama…

Alabama began the season with its best start in school history, winning its first 14 matches. Since then, the Crimson Tide have dropped four straight, including its first three conference matches. UA is led in singles by 92nd-ranked Mazen Osama, its lone ranked singles player. In doubles, the Crimson Tide boasts a pair of duos ranked in the top 50. Osama teams up with Edson Ortiz to form the nation's 31st-ranked pair, while veterans Thibault Cancel and Alexey Nesterov form a tandem that is ranked 46th nationally.

What To Note As MSU Faces Alabama…

MSU is in its 94th season of tennis, with Matt Roberts in his fourth season at the helm.
Since 1969, MSU is 33-24 in the series against Alabama and have won the last eight meetings.
In Tuscaloosa, the Bulldogs are 14-11 in the series and have won three in a row.
Last season, the Maroon and White claimed a 5-2 victory against the Crimson Tide in Starkville. State took the doubles point, with Niclas Braun and Trevor Foshey clinching on court 1 after Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic won on court 3. Mate Cutura, Giovanni Oradini, Braun and Foshey all won their singles bouts.
Against ranked foes under Roberts, MSU is 38-26. Against ranked opponents this season, the Bulldogs are 3-1.
On the road in the SEC under Roberts, MSU is 14-11.
Braun and Oradini have won five consecutive matches in doubles, including four in a row in dual match play.
Foshey and Braun have both won seven of their first eight singles matches to start 2018.
Borges, the reigning SEC Player of the Year, comes into the match having not dropped a match since Oct. 6 and is riding a career-best 15-match winning streak.

Live Stats/Video

Live Stats: http://hailst.at/2pbpxcQ
Live Video (if playing outdoors): http://hailst.at/2pbNGjF

Next Up For MSU…

Upon returning from Tuscaloosa, the Bulldogs will be back home for a pair of matches against top-25 opponents. On March 23, State will host No. 20 Vanderbilt at 3 p.m., followed by a 1 p.m. match the following Sunday (March 25) against No. 21 Kentucky. Admission is free to all home regular season matches at A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre.

For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.