Mississippi State
Ohio State
No. 15 State Falls To Top-Ranked Buckeyes In Sweet 16
May 11, 2024 | Men's Tennis
COLUMBUS, Ohio – No. 15 Mississippi State picked up a pair of ranked wins during Saturday's Sweet 16 showdown at No. 1 Ohio State.
But the Bulldogs were unable to extend their season beyond the Super Regional round, falling to the Buckeyes 4-1 on a brisk afternoon at the Auer Tennis Complex.
Matt Roberts' MSU squad was making their fifth appearance in the Sweet 16 in the past six seasons and finished the year with a 19-8 overall record.
The Bulldogs began things on Saturday by earning the first win of the day in doubles. Carles Hernandez and Dusan Milanovic made quick work of the nation's No. 49 tandem of Justin Boulais and Andrew Lutschaunig 6-1 to gain some early momentum.
It was Hernandez and Milanovic's 14th victory of the season and third over a ranked opponent. They also downed Florida State's then 52nd-ranked tandem of Loris Pourroy and Youcef Rihane 6-3 and Georgia's 37th-ranked duo of Ryan Colby and Niels Ratiu 6-2 earlier in the spring.
Mississippi State's lone singles win was a big one as No. 47 Petar Jovanovic topped 17th-ranked Cannon Kingsley 6-4, 6-2. It was Jovanovic's team-leading ninth victory over a ranked foe in singles this season and his 28th singles win overall. He has knocked off three top 20 competitors on the year.
No. 47 Nemanja Malesevic finishes his storied dual match career tied for seventh all-time in Bulldog history with 106 career dual match victories with Laurent Miquelard (1992-95). Malesevic's 60 career dual match singles wins are also the ninth-most in MSU's record books.
Ohio State (33-1) improved to 38-0 all-time at home during the NCAA Championships and advances to the quarterfinals next week in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Jovanovic, Malesevic and Benito Sanchez Martinez will also be heading to Stillwater to compete in the NCAA Individual Championships from May 20-25. Jovanovic and Malesevic are set to play singles at the event while Jovanovic and Sanchez Martinez – the 11th-ranked duo in the nation – will test how they stack up in doubles.
No. 1 Ohio State 4, No. 15 Mississippi State 1Auer Tennis Complex | Columbus, Ohio
May 11, 2024
Doubles
1. No. 3 JJ Tracy/Robert Cash (OSU) def. No. 11 Petar Jovanovic/Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) 6-2
2. Carles Hernandez/Dusan Milanovic (MSU) def. No. 49 Andrew Lutschaunig/Justin Boulais (OSU) 6-1
3. Cannon Kingsley/Jack Anthrop (OSU) def. Nemanja Malesevic/Michal Novansky (MSU) 6-2
Order of finish: (2,3,1)
Singles
1. No. 34 Justin Boulais (OSU) def. No. 47 Nemanja Malesevic (MSU) 6-1, 6-0
2. No. 48 Petar Jovanovic (MSU) def. No. 17 Cannon Kingsley (OSU) 6-4, 6-2
3. No. 19 JJ Tracy (OSU) vs. Carles Hernandez (MSU) 6-4, 2-3, unfinished
4. No. 30 Jack Anthrop (OSU) def. Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) 6-3, 7-6(3)
5. Alexander Bernard (OSU) vs. Dusan Milanovic (MS) 7-5, 6-7(4), unfinished
6. Robert Cash (OSU) def. Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes (MS) 6-3, 6-2
Order of finish: (1,6,2,4)
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Players Mentioned
