Saturday, January 26
Starkville
2:00 PM
Mississippi State
vs
Wichita State
No. 3 MSU opens up the 2019 slate hosting ITA Kick-Off Weekend, starting with Wichita State on Saturday.
No. 3 Bulldogs Open 2019 By Hosting ITA Kick-Off; Face Shockers Saturday
January 25, 2019 | Men's Tennis
by Caleb Garner, Graduate Assistant/Communications
STARKVILLE – Nearly eight months have passed since the third-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team last took the court as a team.
That long wait ends Saturday, as the 2018 Southeastern Conference Tournament Champion Bulldogs open up their 2019 dual match slate against Wichita State in their first match of ITA Kick-Off Weekend. First serve against the Shockers (1-1) is set for not before 2 p.m. CT. Arizona and UNC Wilmington open up the tournament at 11 a.m. Saturday.
"We've got a great weekend ahead of us," fifth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "We're excited to be back at home and compete in front of our awesome fans at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. Our four seniors have worked their tails off to get us in position to host this great event during their time here. We have three great teams coming in, so we will need to start sharp with a lot of energy and control the things we can control, because this weekend will be a great early challenge for us."
This is MSU's 10th appearance in one of the ITA's marquee events, which features some of the top teams in college tennis, who are vying for one of 15 spots in the 2019 ITA National Team Indoor Championship, to be held Feb. 15-18 in Chicago.
The Bulldogs return all six singles starters from last season's NCAA quarterfinal squad, a luxury only six teams in the preseason top-25 have entering the 2019 season.
In Saturday's match, the Bulldogs will be donning special teal jerseys in memory of MSU softball's Alex Wilcox, who passed away in June after a long, valiant battle with ovarian cancer. Additionally, MSU head softball coach Vann Stuedeman will be serving up a ceremonial first serve prior to Saturday's MSU-WSU contest.
"Our team has enjoyed learning about Alex Wilcox this week and the tremendous impact she had around our community," Roberts said. "We will play our match Saturday for Alex and she will be with us this whole season."
MSU In The Oracle ITA Rankings …
The Bulldogs are currently ranked third nationally—matching the program's highest ranking ever and the highest since 1999. In the ITA national singles rankings, Nuno Borges leads four State players at 11th in the nation. Niclas Braun (No. 67), Florian Broska (No. 78) and Trevor Foshey (No. 93) round out MSU's ranked singles players. State boasts a pair of ranked doubles tandems in seventh-ranked Braun and Giovanni Oradini and No. 36 Borges and Strahinja Rakic.
Know The Foe: ITA Kick-Off Weekend
Wichita State enters the weekend coming off a 5-2 win against Denver to rebound from a 4-0 loss at Oklahoma. Last season, the Shockers went 14-10 overall in their first year in the American Athletic Conference. WSU returns their singles leaders from a year ago in Murkel Dellien and Marius Frosa, who each notched 16 victories, with Dellien leading the team with 14 dual match singles wins.
Arizona comes to Starkville undefeated early in its 2019 campaign, with wins over UC-Riverside (7-0) and Grand Canyon (5-2). Last season, the Wildcats finished 16-15 overall while reaching the quarterfinals of the Pac 12 tournament. UA is led in singles by Igor Karpovets, who is currently 2-0 on the year at the No. 1 singles position and went 16-16 overall as a freshman in 2017-18.
UNC Wilmington is coming off a tough, 4-3 victory against BYU in Orlando at the USTA National Campus. The Seahawks are consistently one of the top teams in the CAA and have reached the NCAA Championship two years in a row.
Need To Know …
Promotions
2019 ITA Kick-Off Weekend Schedule
Saturday, Jan. 26
11 a.m. CT – Arizona (2-0) vs. UNC Wilmington (1-1)
not before 2 p.m. – No. 3 Mississippi State (0-0) vs. Wichita State (1-1)
Sunday, Jan. 27
10 a.m. CT – Consolation match
not before 1 p.m. – Championship match
Next Up For MSU …
After the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, the Bulldogs continue their homestand against a pair of Florida foes in Miami (Feb. 1, 2 p.m.) and South Florida (Feb. 3, 11 a.m.).
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
STARKVILLE – Nearly eight months have passed since the third-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team last took the court as a team.
That long wait ends Saturday, as the 2018 Southeastern Conference Tournament Champion Bulldogs open up their 2019 dual match slate against Wichita State in their first match of ITA Kick-Off Weekend. First serve against the Shockers (1-1) is set for not before 2 p.m. CT. Arizona and UNC Wilmington open up the tournament at 11 a.m. Saturday.
"We've got a great weekend ahead of us," fifth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "We're excited to be back at home and compete in front of our awesome fans at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. Our four seniors have worked their tails off to get us in position to host this great event during their time here. We have three great teams coming in, so we will need to start sharp with a lot of energy and control the things we can control, because this weekend will be a great early challenge for us."
This is MSU's 10th appearance in one of the ITA's marquee events, which features some of the top teams in college tennis, who are vying for one of 15 spots in the 2019 ITA National Team Indoor Championship, to be held Feb. 15-18 in Chicago.
The Bulldogs return all six singles starters from last season's NCAA quarterfinal squad, a luxury only six teams in the preseason top-25 have entering the 2019 season.
In Saturday's match, the Bulldogs will be donning special teal jerseys in memory of MSU softball's Alex Wilcox, who passed away in June after a long, valiant battle with ovarian cancer. Additionally, MSU head softball coach Vann Stuedeman will be serving up a ceremonial first serve prior to Saturday's MSU-WSU contest.
"Our team has enjoyed learning about Alex Wilcox this week and the tremendous impact she had around our community," Roberts said. "We will play our match Saturday for Alex and she will be with us this whole season."
MSU In The Oracle ITA Rankings …
The Bulldogs are currently ranked third nationally—matching the program's highest ranking ever and the highest since 1999. In the ITA national singles rankings, Nuno Borges leads four State players at 11th in the nation. Niclas Braun (No. 67), Florian Broska (No. 78) and Trevor Foshey (No. 93) round out MSU's ranked singles players. State boasts a pair of ranked doubles tandems in seventh-ranked Braun and Giovanni Oradini and No. 36 Borges and Strahinja Rakic.
Know The Foe: ITA Kick-Off Weekend
Wichita State enters the weekend coming off a 5-2 win against Denver to rebound from a 4-0 loss at Oklahoma. Last season, the Shockers went 14-10 overall in their first year in the American Athletic Conference. WSU returns their singles leaders from a year ago in Murkel Dellien and Marius Frosa, who each notched 16 victories, with Dellien leading the team with 14 dual match singles wins.
Arizona comes to Starkville undefeated early in its 2019 campaign, with wins over UC-Riverside (7-0) and Grand Canyon (5-2). Last season, the Wildcats finished 16-15 overall while reaching the quarterfinals of the Pac 12 tournament. UA is led in singles by Igor Karpovets, who is currently 2-0 on the year at the No. 1 singles position and went 16-16 overall as a freshman in 2017-18.
UNC Wilmington is coming off a tough, 4-3 victory against BYU in Orlando at the USTA National Campus. The Seahawks are consistently one of the top teams in the CAA and have reached the NCAA Championship two years in a row.
Need To Know …
- Mississippi State is opening its 95th season of men's tennis, with Matt Roberts entering his fifth season at the helm.
- The Bulldogs are just two wins shy of 1,000 in program history.
- In home openers, State has fared well, winning 14-straight lid-lifters, and holding a 40-8 mark since 1969.
- MSU has won its last 20 non-conference matches at A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. Under Roberts, the Bulldogs are 24-1 in home non-SEC matches.
- The Bulldogs are taking on Wichita State for the first time in program history.
- Nuno Borges is currently tied for seventh all-time in career singles wins (91), needing one to tie for sixth.
- The Bulldogs are making their 10th appearance in ITA Kick-Off Weekend, this year marking their third as a host. State holds an 11-7 mark in ITA Kick-Off Weekend and has advanced to the National Team Indoor Championship three times since the Kick-Off Weekend was started in 2009. State also qualified for the National Indoors eight-straight seasons (1992-99) when the event only showcased the nation's top 16 teams.
Promotions
- FREE Admission
- Up to 275 Hail State Rewards Points
- 150 Bully's Kids Club Points
2019 ITA Kick-Off Weekend Schedule
Saturday, Jan. 26
11 a.m. CT – Arizona (2-0) vs. UNC Wilmington (1-1)
not before 2 p.m. – No. 3 Mississippi State (0-0) vs. Wichita State (1-1)
Sunday, Jan. 27
10 a.m. CT – Consolation match
not before 1 p.m. – Championship match
Next Up For MSU …
After the ITA Kick-Off Weekend, the Bulldogs continue their homestand against a pair of Florida foes in Miami (Feb. 1, 2 p.m.) and South Florida (Feb. 3, 11 a.m.).
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
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