Mississippi State
Auburn
No. 14 MSU Secures Fourth-Straight Ranked Road Win
April 07, 2024 | Men's Tennis
AUBURN, Ala., - Some say the road can be unkind in the Southeastern Conference.
Mississippi State men's tennis, however, has thrived on it. The 14th-ranked Bulldogs won their fourth consecutive ranked road match 4-2 at No. 32 Auburn on Sunday afternoon and are now 6-2 in away matches this season.
The Bulldogs (16-6, 8-3 SEC) now have nine wins over ranked opponents this season and enter their final match of the regular season at No. 41 Arkansas next Sunday at 1 p.m. in third place in the SEC standings.
"We are trusting our process daily and are enjoying our journey together," said head coach Matt Roberts. "We have a lot of trust in each other and are taking care of the little things on and off the court. We're excited to play another road match next weekend and look forward to another tough opponent."
Sunday's match on The Plains started well for State. Carles Hernandez and Dusan Milanovic began the day with a 6-2 win over Billy Blaydes and Nicholas Heng in doubles. No. 22 Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez then secured the point by blanking 37th-ranked Finn Murgett and Raul Dobai in a tiebreaker 7-6(0).
Jovanovic took that momentum over to singles where the 42nd-ranked Bulldog beat No. 101 Murgett in straight sets 6-2, 6-3. It was Jovanovic's 50th career singles win and his team-leading seventh over a ranked singles opponent this season.
Auburn (14-9, 5-5 SEC) answered and tied the match with a pair of singles victories of its own. But the Bulldogs came barking back as Sanchez Martinez gave MSU back the lead with his 7-5, 6-2 win against Heng.
After dropping a first-set tiebreaker to 45th-ranked Tyler Stice 6-7(5), No. 101 Nemanja Malesevic took the final two sets 6-1, 6-4 to clinch his fifth match of the season and 21st of his career. It was also his sixth ranked singles win of the year and 23rd of his career.
Mississippi State has now won 15 of its last 16 matches against Auburn, including 10 straight over the Tigers.
"Auburn always competes at a high level on all courts so we knew today was going to be a battle," Roberts said. "Benito and Pete were so clear and committed in the doubles tiebreaker and it was huge for us today to get the doubles point. All of our guys showed a lot of fight. I'm expecally proud of 'Memo' (Malesevic) for getting his poise after the first set and played his best tennis when it mattered the most."
Yarbrough Tennis Center | Auburn, Ala.
April 7, 2024
Doubles
1. No. 22 Petar Jovanovic/Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. No. 37 Finn Murgett/Raul Dobai (AUB) 7-6(0)
2. Tyler Stice/Will Nolan (AUB) def. Nemanja Malesevic/Michal Novansky (MSU) 6-3
3. Carles Hernandez/Dusan Milanovic (MSU) def. Billy Blaydes/Nicholas Heng (AUB) 6-2
Order of finish: (3,2,1)
Singles
1. No. 107 Nemanja Malesevic (MSU) def. No. 45 Tyler Stice (AUB) 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4
2. No. 42 Petar Jovanovic (MSU) def. No. 101 Finn Murgett (AUB) 6-2, 6-3
3. Billy Blaydes (AUB) def. Carles Hernandez (MSU) 6-3, 6-4
4. Alejandro Moreno (AUB) vs. Dusan Milanovic (MSU) 7-5, 5-7, 5-5, unfinished
5. Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. Nicholas Heng (AUB) 7-5, 6-2
6. Raul Dobai (AUB) def. Radomir Tomic (MSU) 6-1, 6-4
Order of finish: (2,3,6,5,1)
For more information on the Bulldog men's tennis program, visit HailState.com or search for "HailStateMT" on X, Instagram and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
