Women's Tennis Opens at Debbie Southern Fall Classic

Friday, September 17

Greenville, S.C.

Mississippi State

Debbie Southern Fall Classic

Photo by: Chamberlain Smith/MSU Athletics

Women's Tennis Opens at Debbie Southern Fall Classic

September 16, 2021 | Women's Tennis

By: Logan Lowery, Assistant Coordinator/Communications

GREENVILLE, S.C. – For the fifth time in the past six years, Mississippi State will open its fall slate at the Debbie Southern Fall Classic, hosted by Furman University.

Play gets underway Friday at 7:30 a.m. and will continue through Sunday. Players from 13 different programs from around the country are participating in the tournament at the Mickel Tennis Center.

"It is a nice facility," said MSU head coach Daryl Greenan. "They have 13 outdoor courts and four indoor courts. So we can have some indoor backups. The [number of teams] attending this tournament is almost bursting at the seams."

Just as impressive as the quantity of opponents is the quality of them. Several of the nation's top women's tennis programs are sending players to the event. In addition to MSU and host Furman, North Carolina, Florida State, Vanderbilt, Texas, Wake Forest, Ohio State, Duke, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia Tech and Clemson will all be represented.

Texas (1), North Carolina (2), Florida State (7), Duke (8), Georgia Tech (10), Ohio State (12) and Tennessee (18) all finished in the top 25 of the ITA team rankings in the spring.

"We are getting high-level [opponents]," Greenan said. "It is all power conference schools. Texas is in it and they are the defending national champions. North Carolina [will be there] and they have been a top two or three [team] for the past several years. Ohio State is tough. It is just a really high-level tournament."

No. 22 Emmanouela Antonaki and senior Magda Adaloglou and will get the day started outdoors for the Bulldogs at 7:30 a.m. CT. Antonaki, a junior, battles Ellie Coleman of Duke in Flight 1 while Adaloglou takes on 62^nd-ranked Anna Brylin of Wake Forest in Flight 3.

Junior Tamara Racine faces Furman's Maggie Pate in Flight 5 at 9 a.m. and sophomore Chloe Cirotté competes against North Carolina's Kacie Harvey in Flight 6 at 9:30 a.m.

Sophomore Alexandra Mikhailuk is the final outdoor competitor to get started for State as she matches up against Furman's Jess Dawson at 11 a.m. in Flight 9.

Sophomore Marta Falceto will get things going in the indoor facility at 7:30 a.m. against Alexandra Antilla of Clemson in Flight 10. In Flight 12, junior Maddie McKee will make her collegiate debut against Ohio State's Dani Schoenly at 10:30 a.m.

The Bulldogs are also scheduled to compete in three doubles matches that will start at the conclusion of singles.

No. 41 Antonaki and Racine will team up against the Duke tandem of Coleman and Chloe Beck.

The other two doubles matches will see student-athletes from MSU and Wake Forest square off. No. 43 Adaloglou and Cirotte join forces against eighth-ranked Brylin and Brooke Killingsworth while Falceto and Mikhailuk take on Casie Wooten and Saby Nihalani.

"We like it because, straight out of the gate the girls get an opportunity to play some really tough matches," said MSU assistant coach Sachin Kirtane. "Win or lose, in order to win in the SEC you have to learn to play against the best."

Mississippi State returns six players from last year's squad that reached the NCAA Championships. The coaching staff has been pleased with their practice efforts over the past month in preparation for the start of the fall season.

"The collective effort the girls are putting in is outstanding," Kirtane said. "They are serving to the right place. They are doing all of the things we ask them to do. In the end, that is what matters. For Daryl and myself, our quality of life is a lot easier when you can show up every day on the court and know that the girls are going to give it their all."

There is a threat of inclement weather on Friday with the potential of having all events moved to the indoor facility at Clemson University, which is 32 miles away.

For more information on the Bulldog women's tennis program, visit HailState.com or search for "HailStateWT" on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.