Friday, April 13
College Station, Texas
6:00 PM
Mississippi State
2
at
5
Texas A&M
MSU's No. 3 Nuno Borges notched his 17th ranked win of the season on Friday night at No. 5 Texas A&M.
Photo by: Blake Williams/MSU Athletics
No. 7 Bulldogs Drop Hard-Fought Contest At No. 5 Texas A&M
April 13, 2018 | Men's Tennis
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – In a matchup of the Southeastern Conference's unbeatens on Friday night, only one team could come out still undefeated in the league.
No. 5 Texas A&M was that team, as the seventh-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (16-2, 10-1 SEC) dropped a hard-fought, 5-2 road decision to the Aggies (19-4, 11-0) at the Mitchell Tennis Center.
The Bulldogs gained early momentum by convincingly taking the doubles point, but the Aggies saw early success in singles that proved to be the difference as they ended MSU's remarkable 12-match win streak, which was the second longest in school history.
"Give Texas A&M credit—they played very well down the stretch and played the big points well," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "I'm very proud of how we competed in doubles. That was some of the best doubles we have played all year. Beating A&M in doubles in front of a large, energetic crowd was big for us. We needed to start sharper in singles. The conditions were tough—it was very windy and that played to A&M's favor. We just didn't play like ourselves in singles—they played clean, had a great start and it was tough to come back from dropping those five first sets."
The Bulldogs started off doubles like they have many times this season—taking a quick advantage on court 2. There, 44th-ranked Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini took a dominant 6-2 victory against A&M's Jordi Arconada and Patrick Kypson. The win extended the State duo's streak to a dozen matches—all in dual match play.
A few minutes later, on court 3, the Bulldog tandem of Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey earned a hard-fought 6-3 win against 89th-ranked A.J. Catanzariti and Valentin Vacherot to put MSU up 1-0 at the intermission. Broska and Foshey broke the Aggie tandem at deuce to clinch the point. State's 42nd-ranked pair of Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic was up 5-4 in a tight battle on court 1 against Aggies Juan Carlos Aguilar and Arthur Rinderknech when their match was suspended at the clincher. MSU has now won three straight doubles points and eight of its last nine.
Texas A&M got off to a hot start in singles, however, taking five of the six first sets. The Aggies then knotted it up at 1-all when the 41st-ranked Arconada downed MSU's No. 78 Rakic 6-2, 6-2 on court 3. State would reclaim the lead minutes later when the third-ranked Borges notched a 6-3, 6-3 victory against the sixth-ranked TAMU freshman Kypson. It was Borges' second win against the 2017 U.S. Open participant, as he took a 6-4, 6-2 decision in Pensacola, Fla., back in November.
The Aggies would tie it up again at 2-2 when 52nd-ranked Valentin Vacherot picked up a 6-4, 6-2 win on court 4 against MSU's Braun. TAMU then took a 3-2 lead when the 10th-ranked Rinderknech took a tight 7-6(0), 6-3 decision against State's No. 19 Oradini on court 2. The match would be far from over, as the remaining two courts were in tight third sets.
But Texas A&M would claim both, clinching the win on court 5 when the 105th-ranked Aguilar earned a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win against MSU's Broska in a battle of freshmen. The Aggies made it 5-2 when Barnaby Smith fended off State's Foshey in a 6-4, 6-7(3), 7-5 decision at the No. 6 position.
"I'm proud of our team for never giving up and fighting really hard together," Roberts said. "We have an amazing culture here and I'm very proud of these guys for investing their time and energy in building this team and culture. It shows how hard we compete for each other and we're building something very special here. We'll keep our heads up, continue to improve as a group and get ready for another great match on Sunday."
Next Up For MSU…
To close out the regular season, State will make the trip over to Baton Rouge to face LSU at Noon on Sunday before beginning preparations for the 2018 SEC Championship, to be held April 25-29 in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 5 Texas A&M 5, No. 7 Mississippi State 2
Mitchell Tennis Center
College Station, Texas
April 13, 2018
Doubles
1. #42 Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) vs. Juan Carlos Aguilar/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) 5-4 (susp.)
2. #44 Niclas Braun/Giovanni Oradini (MSU) def. Jordi Arconada/Patrick Kypson (TAMU) 6-2
3. Florian Broska/Trevor Foshey (MSU) def. #89 A.J. Catanzariti/Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) 6-3
Order of finish: 2, 3
Singles
1. #3 Nuno Borges (MSU) def. #6 Patrick Kypson (TAMU) 6-3, 6-3
2. #10 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. #19 Giovanni Oradini (MSU) 7-6(0), 6-3
3. #41 Jordi Arconada (TAMU) def. #78 Strahinja Rakic (MSU) 6-2, 6-2
4. #52 Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) def. Niclas Braun (MSU) 6-4, 6-2
5. #105 Juan Carlos Aguilar (TAMU) def. Florian Broska (MSU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
6. Barnaby Smith (TAMU) def. Trevor Foshey (MSU) 6-4, 6-7(3), 7-5
Order of finish: 3, 1, 4, 2, 5, 6
No. 5 Texas A&M was that team, as the seventh-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team (16-2, 10-1 SEC) dropped a hard-fought, 5-2 road decision to the Aggies (19-4, 11-0) at the Mitchell Tennis Center.
The Bulldogs gained early momentum by convincingly taking the doubles point, but the Aggies saw early success in singles that proved to be the difference as they ended MSU's remarkable 12-match win streak, which was the second longest in school history.
"Give Texas A&M credit—they played very well down the stretch and played the big points well," fourth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "I'm very proud of how we competed in doubles. That was some of the best doubles we have played all year. Beating A&M in doubles in front of a large, energetic crowd was big for us. We needed to start sharper in singles. The conditions were tough—it was very windy and that played to A&M's favor. We just didn't play like ourselves in singles—they played clean, had a great start and it was tough to come back from dropping those five first sets."
The Bulldogs started off doubles like they have many times this season—taking a quick advantage on court 2. There, 44th-ranked Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini took a dominant 6-2 victory against A&M's Jordi Arconada and Patrick Kypson. The win extended the State duo's streak to a dozen matches—all in dual match play.
A few minutes later, on court 3, the Bulldog tandem of Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey earned a hard-fought 6-3 win against 89th-ranked A.J. Catanzariti and Valentin Vacherot to put MSU up 1-0 at the intermission. Broska and Foshey broke the Aggie tandem at deuce to clinch the point. State's 42nd-ranked pair of Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic was up 5-4 in a tight battle on court 1 against Aggies Juan Carlos Aguilar and Arthur Rinderknech when their match was suspended at the clincher. MSU has now won three straight doubles points and eight of its last nine.
Texas A&M got off to a hot start in singles, however, taking five of the six first sets. The Aggies then knotted it up at 1-all when the 41st-ranked Arconada downed MSU's No. 78 Rakic 6-2, 6-2 on court 3. State would reclaim the lead minutes later when the third-ranked Borges notched a 6-3, 6-3 victory against the sixth-ranked TAMU freshman Kypson. It was Borges' second win against the 2017 U.S. Open participant, as he took a 6-4, 6-2 decision in Pensacola, Fla., back in November.
The Aggies would tie it up again at 2-2 when 52nd-ranked Valentin Vacherot picked up a 6-4, 6-2 win on court 4 against MSU's Braun. TAMU then took a 3-2 lead when the 10th-ranked Rinderknech took a tight 7-6(0), 6-3 decision against State's No. 19 Oradini on court 2. The match would be far from over, as the remaining two courts were in tight third sets.
But Texas A&M would claim both, clinching the win on court 5 when the 105th-ranked Aguilar earned a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win against MSU's Broska in a battle of freshmen. The Aggies made it 5-2 when Barnaby Smith fended off State's Foshey in a 6-4, 6-7(3), 7-5 decision at the No. 6 position.
"I'm proud of our team for never giving up and fighting really hard together," Roberts said. "We have an amazing culture here and I'm very proud of these guys for investing their time and energy in building this team and culture. It shows how hard we compete for each other and we're building something very special here. We'll keep our heads up, continue to improve as a group and get ready for another great match on Sunday."
Next Up For MSU…
To close out the regular season, State will make the trip over to Baton Rouge to face LSU at Noon on Sunday before beginning preparations for the 2018 SEC Championship, to be held April 25-29 in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
No. 5 Texas A&M 5, No. 7 Mississippi State 2
Mitchell Tennis Center
College Station, Texas
April 13, 2018
Doubles
1. #42 Nuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic (MSU) vs. Juan Carlos Aguilar/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) 5-4 (susp.)
2. #44 Niclas Braun/Giovanni Oradini (MSU) def. Jordi Arconada/Patrick Kypson (TAMU) 6-2
3. Florian Broska/Trevor Foshey (MSU) def. #89 A.J. Catanzariti/Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) 6-3
Order of finish: 2, 3
Singles
1. #3 Nuno Borges (MSU) def. #6 Patrick Kypson (TAMU) 6-3, 6-3
2. #10 Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) def. #19 Giovanni Oradini (MSU) 7-6(0), 6-3
3. #41 Jordi Arconada (TAMU) def. #78 Strahinja Rakic (MSU) 6-2, 6-2
4. #52 Valentin Vacherot (TAMU) def. Niclas Braun (MSU) 6-4, 6-2
5. #105 Juan Carlos Aguilar (TAMU) def. Florian Broska (MSU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
6. Barnaby Smith (TAMU) def. Trevor Foshey (MSU) 6-4, 6-7(3), 7-5
Order of finish: 3, 1, 4, 2, 5, 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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