Sunday, March 25
Starkville
1:00 PM
Mississippi State
5
vs
2
Kentucky
Strahinja Rakic went a combined 4-0 on the weekend to help State move to 6-0 in SEC play for the first time since 1997.
Photo by: Trevor Birchett/MSU Athletics
No. 13 Bulldogs Continue Home Dominance Against No. 21 Kentucky
March 25, 2018 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Home, sweet home.
The 13th-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (12-1, 6-0 SEC) continued its dominance on the home courts Sunday, taking down No. 21 Kentucky (12-6, 5-2), 5-2 at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre.
With the win, MSU moved to 6-0 in SEC play for the first time since 1997 and are now a sparkling 9-0 at Pitts in 2018.
"Overall, I thought we played the big games and points really well today," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "Give a lot of credit to Kentucky. They're a team that doesn't quit and they played us tough on all six courts today. Once again we had another exciting crowd that made the difference for our guys, so I want to thank everyone who came out today."
For the fourth consecutive match, the Bulldogs got off to a roaring start in doubles. At the No. 1 position, 58th-ranked Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic gave MSU an early advantage, taking a 6-3 decision against Kentucky's 31st-ranked Gus Benson and Cesar Bourgois. It was the tandem's third straight win over a ranked foe. UK evened up the doubles count when Will Bushamuka and Austin Hussey earned a tight 6-3 win against MSU's Florian Broska and Arvid Nordquist. The match marked Nordquist's Bulldog debut.
On court 2, a similar result occurred, with MSU's 30th-ranked Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini also earning a 6-3 win. This time, the duo took down Wildcats Ryotaro Matsumura and Enzo Wallart to move to 9-1 overall and 7-0 in dual matches. MSU has now won eight of its last nine doubles points.
"We are definitely playing with more confidence in doubles at 1," Roberts said. "Strahinja and Nuno are trusting their volleys and serves more. They are a lot more aggressive out there and really setting each other up well. At number 2, Nic is all over the place and Gio sets Nic up really well."
Braun noted that his and Oradini's confidence in doubles began back in the fall in the duo's first tournament of the season.
"We have a lot of confidence in each other right now," Braun said. "We built that back in the fall when we played the first tournament of the year together. I feel like we clicked from the first second. Our chemistry is great right now."
The Bulldogs once again put up a strong showing in singles, taking four of six first sets to get it rolling. Kentucky notched its first point of the day when 26th-ranked Ryotaro Matsumura upset the Bulldogs' third-ranked Borges 6-2, 6-3 on court 1. State reclaimed the lead for good at the No. 3 spot, where No. 86 Rakic won his third straight match with a solid 6-3, 6-4 win against Wallart.
On court 4, the Bulldogs moved ahead 3-1 when Braun picked up his fifth consecutive win, taking down UK's Trey Yates 6-1, 7-6(8). In the set tiebreaker, Braun led by as much as 5-2 before Yates was able to knot it up and eventually force the tiebreaker to 8-all. Braun then won the final two points to take the breaker, set and match. He has now won nine of his first 10 matches this season.
"(Yates) did very well adjusting to my game plan in the second set," Braun said. "I thought he pushed back very well. At the end, it was all about battling and taking it one point at a time."
Much like the Bulldogs' last match, the clincher came by way of freshman Florian Broska at No. 5. The rookie battled back from dropping a 6-1 decision in his first set against UK's Hussey and went on to win the final two sets, 6-4 and 6-2. The win was his third straight and second match-clincher of the weekend and his career.
Nordquist then notched his first career win, filling in at the No. 6 position. The Swede took a solid 6-2 decision in the first set before UK's Jake Stefanik then evened the match up at a set apiece with a 6-3 second frame. Nordquist battled back to close out his match with a 6-4 triumph in the third set to take the match and put the Bulldogs up 5-1.
"I thought Arvid played with a lot of energy," Roberts said. "I was very proud of how he and Florian competed together in doubles. He is another really good player for us. We have great depth this year, which builds more trust within the team."
UK then earned its final point of the afternoon when Bushamuka earned a win against MSU's 13th-ranked Oradini in a tight three-set contest. After Oradini took the first set 6-4, Bushamuka battled back to win the second set 6-3 to force a deciding third frame. Bushamuka then rallied from down 5-1 to Oradini to take a 6-5 lead. Oradini then forced a tiebreaker that was nip-and-tuck the entire time, as no player led by more than two points. Bushamuka went on to win the breaker by a 10-8 mark to take the set and match 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(8).
MSU has now won its last eight SEC matches at Pitts. Under Roberts' guidance, the Bulldogs are 19-5 at home in league play. Against the Wildcats, MSU has won the last five meetings and is 13-7 in the series in Starkville.
Next Up For MSU…
MSU will take on a pair of top-25 foes on the road next weekend. On Friday, State will face 14th-ranked Georgia at 4 p.m. CT before traveling to Knoxville, Tenn., to take on the 25th-ranked Volunteers on Sunday, April 1 at noon CT. Those two teams met on Sunday, with UT taking a tight 4-3 win against UGA in Knoxville.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 13 Mississippi State 5, No. 21 Kentucky 2
A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre
Starkville, Miss.
March 25, 2018
Doubles
1. #58 Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. #31 Gus Benson/Cesar Bourgois (UK) 6-3
2. #30 Niclas Braun/Giovanni Oradini (MSU) def. Ryotaro Matsumura/Enzo Wallart (UK) 6-3
3. Will Bushamuka/Austin Hussey (UK) def. Florian Broska/Arvid Nordquist (MSU) 6-3
Order of finish: 1, 3, 2
Singles
1. #26 Ryotaro Matsumura (UK) def. #3 Nuno Borges (MSU) 6-2, 6-3
2. Will Bushamuka (UK) def. #13 Giovanni Oradini (MSU) 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(8)
3. #86 Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. Enzo Wallart (UK) 6-3, 6-4
4. Niclas Braun (MSU) def. Trey Yates (UK) 6-1, 7-6(8)
5. Florian Broska (MSU) def. Austin Hussey (UK) 1-6, 6-4, 6-2
6. Arvid Nordquist (MSU) def. Jake Stefanik (UK) 6-2, 3-6, 6-4
Order of finish: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 2
The 13th-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (12-1, 6-0 SEC) continued its dominance on the home courts Sunday, taking down No. 21 Kentucky (12-6, 5-2), 5-2 at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre.
With the win, MSU moved to 6-0 in SEC play for the first time since 1997 and are now a sparkling 9-0 at Pitts in 2018.
"Overall, I thought we played the big games and points really well today," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "Give a lot of credit to Kentucky. They're a team that doesn't quit and they played us tough on all six courts today. Once again we had another exciting crowd that made the difference for our guys, so I want to thank everyone who came out today."
For the fourth consecutive match, the Bulldogs got off to a roaring start in doubles. At the No. 1 position, 58th-ranked Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic gave MSU an early advantage, taking a 6-3 decision against Kentucky's 31st-ranked Gus Benson and Cesar Bourgois. It was the tandem's third straight win over a ranked foe. UK evened up the doubles count when Will Bushamuka and Austin Hussey earned a tight 6-3 win against MSU's Florian Broska and Arvid Nordquist. The match marked Nordquist's Bulldog debut.
On court 2, a similar result occurred, with MSU's 30th-ranked Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini also earning a 6-3 win. This time, the duo took down Wildcats Ryotaro Matsumura and Enzo Wallart to move to 9-1 overall and 7-0 in dual matches. MSU has now won eight of its last nine doubles points.
"We are definitely playing with more confidence in doubles at 1," Roberts said. "Strahinja and Nuno are trusting their volleys and serves more. They are a lot more aggressive out there and really setting each other up well. At number 2, Nic is all over the place and Gio sets Nic up really well."
Braun noted that his and Oradini's confidence in doubles began back in the fall in the duo's first tournament of the season.
"We have a lot of confidence in each other right now," Braun said. "We built that back in the fall when we played the first tournament of the year together. I feel like we clicked from the first second. Our chemistry is great right now."
The Bulldogs once again put up a strong showing in singles, taking four of six first sets to get it rolling. Kentucky notched its first point of the day when 26th-ranked Ryotaro Matsumura upset the Bulldogs' third-ranked Borges 6-2, 6-3 on court 1. State reclaimed the lead for good at the No. 3 spot, where No. 86 Rakic won his third straight match with a solid 6-3, 6-4 win against Wallart.
On court 4, the Bulldogs moved ahead 3-1 when Braun picked up his fifth consecutive win, taking down UK's Trey Yates 6-1, 7-6(8). In the set tiebreaker, Braun led by as much as 5-2 before Yates was able to knot it up and eventually force the tiebreaker to 8-all. Braun then won the final two points to take the breaker, set and match. He has now won nine of his first 10 matches this season.
"(Yates) did very well adjusting to my game plan in the second set," Braun said. "I thought he pushed back very well. At the end, it was all about battling and taking it one point at a time."
Much like the Bulldogs' last match, the clincher came by way of freshman Florian Broska at No. 5. The rookie battled back from dropping a 6-1 decision in his first set against UK's Hussey and went on to win the final two sets, 6-4 and 6-2. The win was his third straight and second match-clincher of the weekend and his career.
Nordquist then notched his first career win, filling in at the No. 6 position. The Swede took a solid 6-2 decision in the first set before UK's Jake Stefanik then evened the match up at a set apiece with a 6-3 second frame. Nordquist battled back to close out his match with a 6-4 triumph in the third set to take the match and put the Bulldogs up 5-1.
"I thought Arvid played with a lot of energy," Roberts said. "I was very proud of how he and Florian competed together in doubles. He is another really good player for us. We have great depth this year, which builds more trust within the team."
UK then earned its final point of the afternoon when Bushamuka earned a win against MSU's 13th-ranked Oradini in a tight three-set contest. After Oradini took the first set 6-4, Bushamuka battled back to win the second set 6-3 to force a deciding third frame. Bushamuka then rallied from down 5-1 to Oradini to take a 6-5 lead. Oradini then forced a tiebreaker that was nip-and-tuck the entire time, as no player led by more than two points. Bushamuka went on to win the breaker by a 10-8 mark to take the set and match 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(8).
MSU has now won its last eight SEC matches at Pitts. Under Roberts' guidance, the Bulldogs are 19-5 at home in league play. Against the Wildcats, MSU has won the last five meetings and is 13-7 in the series in Starkville.
Next Up For MSU…
MSU will take on a pair of top-25 foes on the road next weekend. On Friday, State will face 14th-ranked Georgia at 4 p.m. CT before traveling to Knoxville, Tenn., to take on the 25th-ranked Volunteers on Sunday, April 1 at noon CT. Those two teams met on Sunday, with UT taking a tight 4-3 win against UGA in Knoxville.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 13 Mississippi State 5, No. 21 Kentucky 2
A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre
Starkville, Miss.
March 25, 2018
Doubles
1. #58 Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. #31 Gus Benson/Cesar Bourgois (UK) 6-3
2. #30 Niclas Braun/Giovanni Oradini (MSU) def. Ryotaro Matsumura/Enzo Wallart (UK) 6-3
3. Will Bushamuka/Austin Hussey (UK) def. Florian Broska/Arvid Nordquist (MSU) 6-3
Order of finish: 1, 3, 2
Singles
1. #26 Ryotaro Matsumura (UK) def. #3 Nuno Borges (MSU) 6-2, 6-3
2. Will Bushamuka (UK) def. #13 Giovanni Oradini (MSU) 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(8)
3. #86 Strahinja Rakic (MSU) def. Enzo Wallart (UK) 6-3, 6-4
4. Niclas Braun (MSU) def. Trey Yates (UK) 6-1, 7-6(8)
5. Florian Broska (MSU) def. Austin Hussey (UK) 1-6, 6-4, 6-2
6. Arvid Nordquist (MSU) def. Jake Stefanik (UK) 6-2, 3-6, 6-4
Order of finish: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 2
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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