Friday, March 30
Athens, Ga.
4:00 PM
Mississippi State
4
at
0
Georgia
Trevor Foshey clinched a key victory for the Bulldogs on Friday at No. 20 Georgia
Photo by: Trevor Birchett/MSU Athletics
No. 12 Bulldogs Stay Hot, Blank No. 20 Georgia In Athens
March 30, 2018 | Men's Tennis
ATHENS, Ga. – It had been a while since a Mississippi State men's tennis team earned a win against Georgia in Athens, and very few have been able to complete such a feat.
That ended on Friday, as the 12th-ranked Bulldogs (13-1, 7-0 SEC) blanked No. 20 Georgia, 4-0, at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex to become the first Bulldog team to notch a win in Athens since 2005. MSU continued its hot doubles play and rode that momentum to win five first sets in singles against UGA (9-8, 2-6). Georgia finished the 2017 season as SEC Co-Champion and captured the league tournament crown.
MSU's 7-0 start in league play is its best start in program history. The Bulldogs' 13-1 start is their best since the 1997 squad started 14-1 overall.
"I'm extremely proud of how these young men competed today and handled themselves in a very tough environment," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "It's never easy to win in Athens and we have a lot of respect for (Georgia head coach) Manny (Diaz) and his teams."
It was the same story, different verse for the Bulldogs in doubles on Friday, as they took their fifth consecutive doubles point and their eight of the last nine. All three MSU pairs started off on a tear, with all being up 5-2 simultaneously. Georgia was not about to go quietly, though.
On court 2, MSU's 30th-ranked Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini continued their dominance, halting a Georgia rally attempt to win 6-3 against Alex Phillips and Jan Zielinski. The tandem has now won eight in a row and are undefeated in dual matches.
At the No. 3 spot, 65th-ranked Bulldogs Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey thwarted a similar rally from Georgia's Alex Diaz and Emil Reinberg, holding at love to clinch the doubles point for MSU with a 6-4 win.
On Court 1, 58th-ranked Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic were in the midst of a 5-all battle with Wayne Montgomery and Nathan Ponwith when their match was halted at the clincher.
The Maroon and White rode that momentum into singles play, claiming five of six first sets. On court 2, Giovanni Oradini climbed back into the win column with a dominant 6-1, 6-2 victory against the 55th-ranked Reinberg to put MSU up 2-0.
On court 1, Borges also notched a victory over a ranked foe, defeating 15th-ranked Montgomery in a similar fashion as Oradini—taking a 6-2, 6-2 win to give State a commanding 3-0 lead.
The clincher came down to both courts 3 and 6, as both Rakic and Foshey were serving for the match on their respective courts.
Foshey wound up finishing first, completing a dramatic comeback in the first set after being down 5-2 early. He went on to win 11 of the final 12 games to take the 7-5, 6-1 win to seal the deal. Rakic was up triple match point on 3 before his match was suspended. Braun's and Broska's matches were also suspended at the clincher.
On court 4, Braun earned a tight 7-6(2) win in his first set against 21st-ranked Zielinski, while Broska was in a tight battle with Diaz on court 5. Diaz took the first set 7-6(4) and was up 3-2 at the clincher.
"I was very pleased with Strahinja and how he made his push in his first set," Roberts said. "Gio and Nuno were rocks for us getting off to a good start. The Bulldogs down low showed unbelievable fight, with all being down on their courts and coming back to get 2 out of 3 first sets. We will build off of this tough road win and get ready for another battle on Sunday in Knoxville."
The Bulldogs moved to 9-1 when clinching the doubles point this season. On the road in the SEC under Roberts, MSU is now 16-11. Against ranked foes under Roberts, State improved to 42-26 and 7-1 this season.
Next Up For MSU…
Next, the Bulldogs will round out their road stint with a trip up to Knoxville, Tenn., to take on the 25th-ranked Tennessee Volunteers on Sunday at noon CT.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 12 Mississippi State 4, No. 20 Georgia 0
Dan Magill Tennis Complex
Athens, Ga.
March 30, 2018
Doubles
1. #58 Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) vs. Wayne Montgomery/Nathan Ponwith (UGA) 5-5 (susp.)
2. #30 Niclas Braun/Giovanni Oradini (MSU) def. Alex Phillips/Jan Zielinski (UGA) 6-3
3. #65 Florian Broska/Trevor Foshey (MSU) def. Alex Diaz/Emil Reinberg (UGA) 6-4
Order of finish: 2, 3
Singles
1. #3 Nuno Borges (MSU) def. #15 Wayne Montgomery (UGA) 6-2, 6-2
2. #13 Giovanni Oradini (MSU) def. #55 Emil Reinberg (UGA) 6-1, 6-2
3. #86 Strahinja Rakic (MSU) vs. #97 Nathan Ponwith (UGA) 6-4, 5-2 (susp.)
4. Niclas Braun (MSU) vs. #21 Jan Zielinski (UGA) 7-6(2), 2-4 (susp.)
5. Florian Broska (MSU) vs. Alex Diaz (UGA) 6-7(4), 2-3 (susp.)
6. Trevor Foshey (MSU) def. Alex Phillips (UGA) 7-5, 6-1
Order of finish: 2, 1, 6
That ended on Friday, as the 12th-ranked Bulldogs (13-1, 7-0 SEC) blanked No. 20 Georgia, 4-0, at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex to become the first Bulldog team to notch a win in Athens since 2005. MSU continued its hot doubles play and rode that momentum to win five first sets in singles against UGA (9-8, 2-6). Georgia finished the 2017 season as SEC Co-Champion and captured the league tournament crown.
MSU's 7-0 start in league play is its best start in program history. The Bulldogs' 13-1 start is their best since the 1997 squad started 14-1 overall.
"I'm extremely proud of how these young men competed today and handled themselves in a very tough environment," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "It's never easy to win in Athens and we have a lot of respect for (Georgia head coach) Manny (Diaz) and his teams."
It was the same story, different verse for the Bulldogs in doubles on Friday, as they took their fifth consecutive doubles point and their eight of the last nine. All three MSU pairs started off on a tear, with all being up 5-2 simultaneously. Georgia was not about to go quietly, though.
On court 2, MSU's 30th-ranked Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini continued their dominance, halting a Georgia rally attempt to win 6-3 against Alex Phillips and Jan Zielinski. The tandem has now won eight in a row and are undefeated in dual matches.
At the No. 3 spot, 65th-ranked Bulldogs Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey thwarted a similar rally from Georgia's Alex Diaz and Emil Reinberg, holding at love to clinch the doubles point for MSU with a 6-4 win.
On Court 1, 58th-ranked Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic were in the midst of a 5-all battle with Wayne Montgomery and Nathan Ponwith when their match was halted at the clincher.
The Maroon and White rode that momentum into singles play, claiming five of six first sets. On court 2, Giovanni Oradini climbed back into the win column with a dominant 6-1, 6-2 victory against the 55th-ranked Reinberg to put MSU up 2-0.
On court 1, Borges also notched a victory over a ranked foe, defeating 15th-ranked Montgomery in a similar fashion as Oradini—taking a 6-2, 6-2 win to give State a commanding 3-0 lead.
The clincher came down to both courts 3 and 6, as both Rakic and Foshey were serving for the match on their respective courts.
Foshey wound up finishing first, completing a dramatic comeback in the first set after being down 5-2 early. He went on to win 11 of the final 12 games to take the 7-5, 6-1 win to seal the deal. Rakic was up triple match point on 3 before his match was suspended. Braun's and Broska's matches were also suspended at the clincher.
On court 4, Braun earned a tight 7-6(2) win in his first set against 21st-ranked Zielinski, while Broska was in a tight battle with Diaz on court 5. Diaz took the first set 7-6(4) and was up 3-2 at the clincher.
"I was very pleased with Strahinja and how he made his push in his first set," Roberts said. "Gio and Nuno were rocks for us getting off to a good start. The Bulldogs down low showed unbelievable fight, with all being down on their courts and coming back to get 2 out of 3 first sets. We will build off of this tough road win and get ready for another battle on Sunday in Knoxville."
The Bulldogs moved to 9-1 when clinching the doubles point this season. On the road in the SEC under Roberts, MSU is now 16-11. Against ranked foes under Roberts, State improved to 42-26 and 7-1 this season.
Next Up For MSU…
Next, the Bulldogs will round out their road stint with a trip up to Knoxville, Tenn., to take on the 25th-ranked Tennessee Volunteers on Sunday at noon CT.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 12 Mississippi State 4, No. 20 Georgia 0
Dan Magill Tennis Complex
Athens, Ga.
March 30, 2018
Doubles
1. #58 Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) vs. Wayne Montgomery/Nathan Ponwith (UGA) 5-5 (susp.)
2. #30 Niclas Braun/Giovanni Oradini (MSU) def. Alex Phillips/Jan Zielinski (UGA) 6-3
3. #65 Florian Broska/Trevor Foshey (MSU) def. Alex Diaz/Emil Reinberg (UGA) 6-4
Order of finish: 2, 3
Singles
1. #3 Nuno Borges (MSU) def. #15 Wayne Montgomery (UGA) 6-2, 6-2
2. #13 Giovanni Oradini (MSU) def. #55 Emil Reinberg (UGA) 6-1, 6-2
3. #86 Strahinja Rakic (MSU) vs. #97 Nathan Ponwith (UGA) 6-4, 5-2 (susp.)
4. Niclas Braun (MSU) vs. #21 Jan Zielinski (UGA) 7-6(2), 2-4 (susp.)
5. Florian Broska (MSU) vs. Alex Diaz (UGA) 6-7(4), 2-3 (susp.)
6. Trevor Foshey (MSU) def. Alex Phillips (UGA) 7-5, 6-1
Order of finish: 2, 1, 6
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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