State Falls To South Florida In Non-Conference Finale

Friday, February 22

Tampa, Fla.

12:00 PM

Mississippi State

South Florida

Mississippi State’s women’s tennis team (9-3) fell 5-2 to the homestanding Bulls of South Florida (5-5) on Friday in a marathon match to conclude 2019 non-conference play at the USF Varsity Tennis Complex.

State Falls To South Florida In Non-Conference Finale

February 22, 2019 | Women's Tennis

by Emily Pschigoda, Student Assistant/Communications

TAMPA, Fla. – Mississippi State's women's tennis team (9-3) fell 5-2 to the homestanding Bulls of South Florida (5-5) on Friday in a marathon match to conclude 2019 non-conference play at the USF Varsity Tennis Complex.

MSU took an early advantage in the match, winning the doubles point with victories on courts 2 and 3. Emma Antonaki and Anastasia Rentouli earned State's first doubles triumph over the Bull duo of Amelie Boy and Ana Roman at No. 2 in a 6-3 decision. Janina Braun and Sara Lizariturry then propelled past USF's Alex Mjos and Evelyne Tiron at the No. 3 spot 6-4 for the clincher to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead heading into singles.

Singles was not as kind for State, as the Bulldogs dropped the first two contests to hand the Bulls a 2-1 lead in the contest. After Bulldogs Magda Adalogolou and Braun were handed straight-set defeats on courts 1 and 6, respectively, MSU's 104th-ranked rookie Antonaki then tied the match at 2-2 with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over USF's Evelyne Tiron on court 2.

USF regained the lead at 3-2 with a tight 7-5, 6-3 decision from Laura Pellicer over State's Lizariturry at the No. 5 position. The Bulls' Boy then clinched the match against State's Racine, rallying back for a 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 triumph on court 4.

After the clinch, the Bulls grabbed the final point of the day, which featured a very heated contest between MSU's Rentouli and USF's Vanja Klaric, which Klaric ultimately claimed 7-5, 6-7(1), 1-0(6).

Next Up For MSU…
State continues a four-match road stretch next Friday, as the Bulldogs open another season of highly-anticipated SEC action at 4 p.m. CT at No. 6 South Carolina (5-2) at the Carolina Tennis Centre. In 2018, MSU finished with a 6-7 ledger in conference play, including memorable triumphs against second-ranked Vanderbilt and 14th-ranked Kentucky.

Social Media
For more information on the Mississippi State women's tennis program, follow "HailStateWT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Mississippi State 2, South Florida 5
Feb. 22, 2019
Tampa, Fla. - USF Varsity Tennis Complex

Doubles
1. Nicole Dzenga/Vanja Klaric (USF) def. Magda Adaloglou/Tamara Racine (MSU) 6-0
2. Emma Antonaki/Anastasia Rentouli (MSU) def. Amelie Boy/Ana Roman (USF) 6-3
3. Janina Braun/Sara Lizariturry (MSU) def. Alex Mjos/Evelyne Tiron (USF) 6-4
Order of finish: 1,2,3

Singles
1. #44 Roman (USF) def. #89 Adaloglou (MSU) 6-1, 6-0
2. #104 Antonaki (MSU) def. Tiron (USF) 6-3, 6-4
3. Klaric (USF) def. Rentouli (MSU) 7-5, 6-7(1), 1-0(6)
4. Boy (USF) def. Racine (MSU) 4-6, 6-2, 6-0
5. Laura Pellicer (USF) def. Lizariturry (MSU) 7-5, 6-3
6. Dzenga (USF) def. Braun (MSU) 6-4, 6-1
Order of finish: 1,6,2,5,4,3