Friday, March 9
Starkville
3:00 PM
Mississippi State
vs
Florida
Mississippi State's first top-10 foe of the season comes to Pitts on Friday.
No. 27 MSU Men's Tennis Set To Host No. 9 Florida Friday
March 08, 2018 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Looking to continue its success at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, the 27th-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (7-1, 1-0 SEC) is set to face its first top-10 foe of the 2018 season when the Bulldogs host No. 9 Florida (7-4, 2-0) at 3 p.m. Friday.
The Gators are the third ranked opponent the Bulldogs will have faced this season, with MSU going 1-1 in its previous two ranked matches.
"We're very excited about the opportunity to test ourselves against Florida, who is one of the top teams in the country," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "We've been training very hard the past couple of weeks so I know our guys will be ready to compete. We're expecting another awesome crowd to create an amazing atmosphere for college tennis tomorrow."
Last Time Out For MSU…
In their SEC opener this past Sunday vs. Auburn, the Bulldogs soared past the Tigers, 6-1. State's duo of Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey gave MSU a quick advantage with a 6-2 victory on court 3 against AU's Diego Chavarria and Carles Sarrio. On court 1, Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic battled back from a 4-1 deficit to clinch the point for the Maroon and White by a 6-4 mark against Edward Nguyen and Matteo De Vincentis. Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini also battled back to take a 6-5 lead on court 2 after being down 4-1, but that match was suspended after the clincher. State led 1-0 at the break.
MSU picked up right where it left off in singles, taking all six first sets. State's fourth-ranked All-American Borges continued his winning ways with a quick 6-1, 6-1 win versus then-No. 123 Nguyen, while the 70th-ranked Rakic picked up a 6-2, 6-4 win over Olle Thestrup on court 3. Moments later, Braun clinched the match for MSU on court 4 with a solid 6-2, 7-5 win against Sarrio. At the No. 5 position, Broska notched his first career SEC victory with a gutsy 7-5, 6-4 win against Tad Maclean. The first of two three-setters went to Foshey, who defeated Lorenzo Rodriguez on court 6. The lone Auburn point came when Matteo De Vincentis upset MSU's No. 20 Giovanni Oradini 4-6, 7-6(4), 1-0(9) in a very tight battle at the No. 2 position.
MSU In The ITA Rankings…
In this week's Intercollegiate Tennis Association team rankings, MSU remained at the No. 27 spot nationally as a team. Six Bulldogs made the cut in the singles and doubles rankings. 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 Florida…
Florida enters the weekend having won three of its last four matches. After beginning SEC play 2-0 with victories over No. 17 Georgia (5-2) and No. 25 Tennessee (6-1) in Gainesville, the Gators rose nine spots back into the top 10. UF brings to Starkville five players ranked in the ITA singles rankings, led by Johannes Ingildsen at No. 6. Alfredo Perez (7th), Duarte Vale (68th), reigning SEC Freshman of the Week Oliver Crawford (93rd) and Andy Andrade (101st) round out the list of ranked Gators in singles.
In doubles, Ingildsen and Perez team up to form the top-ranked pair in the country, while Crawford pairs with Chase Perez-Blanco to form the country's 10th-ranked duo. The tandem of McClain Kessler and Vale makes up the No. 12 pair in the nation, while Andrade and Perez-Blanco are ranked 33rd nationally.
What To Note As MSU Hosts Florida…
Live Stats/Video
For all home matches at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, live video and statistics can be found at www.hailstate.com/livemt.
Friday's Promotions
Next Up For MSU…
State will wrap up its three-match homestand to begin conference play with another crucial, top-30 matchup against No. 28 South Carolina at 1 p.m. Sunday. 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.
The Gators are the third ranked opponent the Bulldogs will have faced this season, with MSU going 1-1 in its previous two ranked matches.
"We're very excited about the opportunity to test ourselves against Florida, who is one of the top teams in the country," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "We've been training very hard the past couple of weeks so I know our guys will be ready to compete. We're expecting another awesome crowd to create an amazing atmosphere for college tennis tomorrow."
Last Time Out For MSU…
In their SEC opener this past Sunday vs. Auburn, the Bulldogs soared past the Tigers, 6-1. State's duo of Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey gave MSU a quick advantage with a 6-2 victory on court 3 against AU's Diego Chavarria and Carles Sarrio. On court 1, Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic battled back from a 4-1 deficit to clinch the point for the Maroon and White by a 6-4 mark against Edward Nguyen and Matteo De Vincentis. Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini also battled back to take a 6-5 lead on court 2 after being down 4-1, but that match was suspended after the clincher. State led 1-0 at the break.
MSU picked up right where it left off in singles, taking all six first sets. State's fourth-ranked All-American Borges continued his winning ways with a quick 6-1, 6-1 win versus then-No. 123 Nguyen, while the 70th-ranked Rakic picked up a 6-2, 6-4 win over Olle Thestrup on court 3. Moments later, Braun clinched the match for MSU on court 4 with a solid 6-2, 7-5 win against Sarrio. At the No. 5 position, Broska notched his first career SEC victory with a gutsy 7-5, 6-4 win against Tad Maclean. The first of two three-setters went to Foshey, who defeated Lorenzo Rodriguez on court 6. The lone Auburn point came when Matteo De Vincentis upset MSU's No. 20 Giovanni Oradini 4-6, 7-6(4), 1-0(9) in a very tight battle at the No. 2 position.
MSU In The ITA Rankings…
In this week's Intercollegiate Tennis Association team rankings, MSU remained at the No. 27 spot nationally as a team. Six Bulldogs made the cut in the singles and doubles rankings. 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 Florida…
Florida enters the weekend having won three of its last four matches. After beginning SEC play 2-0 with victories over No. 17 Georgia (5-2) and No. 25 Tennessee (6-1) in Gainesville, the Gators rose nine spots back into the top 10. UF brings to Starkville five players ranked in the ITA singles rankings, led by Johannes Ingildsen at No. 6. Alfredo Perez (7th), Duarte Vale (68th), reigning SEC Freshman of the Week Oliver Crawford (93rd) and Andy Andrade (101st) round out the list of ranked Gators in singles.
In doubles, Ingildsen and Perez team up to form the top-ranked pair in the country, while Crawford pairs with Chase Perez-Blanco to form the country's 10th-ranked duo. The tandem of McClain Kessler and Vale makes up the No. 12 pair in the nation, while Andrade and Perez-Blanco are ranked 33rd nationally.
What To Note As MSU Hosts Florida…
- MSU is in its 94th season of tennis, with Matt Roberts in his fourth season at the helm.
- Since 1972, Florida holds a 36-17 lead in the series against the Bulldogs and has won the last three meetings (and five of the last six).
- In 2017, the Gators notched wins over State twice – 4-2 at the ITA National Indoor Championships and then rallied from a 3-0 deficit to earn a tight 4-3 win over MSU in Gainesville.
- The Bulldogs have won four consecutive SEC matches at A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre.
- Under Roberts, State is a solid 15-5 in home conference matches.
- The Bulldogs have won five home matches in a row to start off the 2018 season, and have won eight straight at Pitts dating back to 2017.
- MSU's 59th-ranked pair of Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey are a perfect 6-0 in 2017-18 (3-0 in dual matches).
- On Sunday vs. Auburn, Broska notched his first career SEC wins in both singles and doubles.
- Foshey and Braun have both won six of their first seven 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 13-match winning streak.
Live Stats/Video
For all home matches at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, live video and statistics can be found at www.hailstate.com/livemt.
Friday's Promotions
- 75 pounds of FREE crawfish
- FREE Admission
- Toss it for a TV between doubles and singles – Chance to win a FREE TV
- FREE schedule cards, posters and match guides
- 200 Hail State Rewards Points
- 200 Bully's Kids Club Points
- Sorority Host: Phi Mu
Next Up For MSU…
State will wrap up its three-match homestand to begin conference play with another crucial, top-30 matchup against No. 28 South Carolina at 1 p.m. Sunday. 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.
Players Mentioned
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