Bulldogs Fall To Razorbacks, Second Round Suspended At SEC Match Play

Sunday, October 10

Birmingham, Ala. (Shoal Creek GC)

Mississippi State

Arkansas

Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics

Bulldogs Fall To Razorbacks, Second Round Suspended At SEC Match Play

October 10, 2021 | Men's Golf

Live Results

By: Josie Hutton, Student Assistant/Communications

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Mississippi State dropped a tightly-contested match to No. 15 Arkansas, 3-2, in SEC Match Play and will continue competition in pool play. State now faces Kentucky in the consolation bracket and will resume play tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m. after play was suspended in the afternoon because of darkness.

"I am very proud of our team for battling the entire day," head coach Dusty Smith said. "We had a great effort against a very good Arkansas team this morning that came down to the very end. We need to learn from it and how we felt coming down the stretch and be better for it the next time we are in that position."

In Round 1, freshman Jay Nimmo and junior Hunter Logan won their matches against the Razorbacks.

Nimmo began the round playing steady golf with four birdies on the front nine, but the match remained even. On the back nine, he won three of the first four holes. Arkansas' Wil Gibson pulled within striking distance, winning Holes 15 and 16, but Nimmo won the 17^th tee to finish claim a 2-and-1 victory.

Logan came out hot for the Bulldogs with four birdies in the front nine. He was 3-up through five holes. He added a turkey on Holes 11, 12, and 13 to go 4-up. He never trailed on his way to a 4-and-5 win over Arkansas' Mateo Fernandez de Oliveira.

Senior Ford Clegg was consistent throughout all his match with a bogey-free front nine but fell at Hole 17 with a bogey. He lost 3-and-1 to Juan Vesga. Sophomore Loïc Ettlin fell 3-and-2, while sophomore Pedro Cruz Silva's matched ended a 5-and-4.

The Bulldogs are in the midst of a match with Kentucky and played nine holes before play was suspended. MSU currently leads 3-1 with Clegg and Cooper Parks all-square through nine. Cruz Silva is 1-up with two birdies carded. Logan added on three birdies to place him 2-up, and Nimmo is sitting 3-up.

"We have a lot of golf left in our second match and need to make sure we maintain that momentum when we resume the match tomorrow morning," Smith continued. "It's tough to win so our focus and mindset needs to be at an elite level."

The Bulldogs will continue with pool play tomorrow to wrap up the back nine against Kentucky and then play an additional 18-hole match against another eliminated team.

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