Mississippi State
Alabama
No. 15 MSU Falls In Second Round Of SEC Championships
April 20, 2023 | Men's Tennis
AUBURN, Ala., - No. 15 Mississippi State saw its time at the SEC Men's Tennis Championships end abruptly with a 4-3 loss in the second round to 46th-ranked Alabama on Thursday at Auburn's Yarbrough Tennis Center.
The sixth-seeded Bulldogs (19-7) were without their top singles and doubles competitor, Nemanja Malesevic, in the match due to an injury that occurred during Wednesday's practice. Malesevic is ranked 80th nationally in singles and is one-half of the No. 57 and No. 81 doubles teams with Carles Hernandez and Michal Novansky, respectively.
MSU dropped a tight doubles point to the 11th-seeded Crimson Tide (12-14) to begin the morning. Alabama's Enzo Aguiard and Zach Foster won the first match 6-3 over Hernandez and Novansky. The Bulldogs' usual No. 2 doubles team, Petar Jovanovic and Ewen Lumsden, moved up and topped Alabama's top tandem of Filip Planinsek and German Samofalov 6-4 to even things up.
The doubles point came down to a tiebreaker on Court 3 where Gregor Ramskogler and Benito Sanchez Martinez fell 7-6(1) to Joao Ferreira and Yair Sarouk.
Undeterred, State rallied back by taking five of six first sets in singles.
Sanchez Martinez downed Roan Jones in straight sets 6-4, 6-2 to even things up. The Bulldogs took a 2-1 advantage when Jovanovic downed No. 92 Planinsek 6-3, 7-6(1).
That lead, however, was short-lived as Foster bounced back to beat Novansky in three sets 4-6, 6-3, 6-1. Matias Ponce De Leon gave Alabama a 3-2 lead with his 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 victory over No. 103 Lumsden. No. 116 Hernandez was able to tie things back up briefly with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win over No. 121 Aguiard but Sarouk sealed the match moments later with a 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 comeback against Ramskogler.
Mississippi State will now await its postseason fate for the NCAA Championships. The NCAA Selection Show is set for May 1 at 5:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.
No. 46 Alabama Men's Tennis 4, No. 15 Mississippi State 3
Yarbrough Tennis Center | Auburn, Ala.
April 20, 2023
Doubles
1. Ewen Lumsden/Petar Jovanovic (MSU) def. Filip Planinsek/German Samofalov (UA) 6-4
2. Enzo Aguiard/Zach Foster (UA) def. Michal Novansky/Carles Hernandez (MSU) 6-3
3. Joao Ferreira/Yair Sarouk (UA) def. Gregor Ramskogler/Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) 7-6(1)
Order of finish: (2,1,3)
Singles
1. Petar Jovanovic (MSU) def. No. 92 Filip Planinsek (UA) 6-3, 7-6(6)
2. No. 116 Carles Hernandez (MSU) def. No. 121 Enzo Aguiard (UA) 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
3. Matias Ponce De Leon (UA) def. No. 103 Ewen Lumsden (MSU) 6-3, 5-7, 6-3
4. Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. Roan Jones (UA) 6-3, 6-2
5. Zach Foster (UA) def. Michal Novansky (MSU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-1
6. Yair Sarouk (UA) def. Gregor Ramskogler (MSU) 3-6, 7-5, 6-3
Order of finish: (4,1,5,3,2,6)
For more information on the Bulldog men's tennis program, visit HailState.com or search for "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
