Mississippi State
Chattanooga
No. 11 State Secures Two Shutouts
January 17, 2025 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE – It's hard to fathom a much better start for Mississippi State.
The 11th-ranked Bulldogs have started the season 3-0 with three-straight shutouts and have yet to drop a set. Matt Roberts' squad picked up two of those victories on Friday afternoon by blanking Chattanooga in consecutive 7-0 showings inside the Rula Tennis Pavilion.
"The most important part of the doubleheader is to stay focused," said junior Michal Novansky. "We need a lot of focus just for one match, then we have to turn it around and do it again. We were able to stay focused and get both wins today."
No. 20 Niccolo Baroni and Mario Martinez Serrano set the tone for the day with a 6-2 doubles triumph over Kristof Kincses and Walker Valentine. Ninth-ranked Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez shutout Cortland Grove and Jakub Jupa 6-0 to take the early point before Novansky and Dusan Milanovic completed the doubles sweep with their 6-3 victory over Jaxon Lamb and Ryan Mudre.
Baroni, ranked 72nd in singles, made short work of Mudre 6-0, 6-1 with 45th-ranked Jovanovic following suit with his 6-3, 6-0 win against Jupa. Sophomore Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes clinched his first-career match as he surged past Kincses 6-1, 6-4.
Radomir Tomic captured his first dual match win of the season 6-2, 6-3 against Carr before Milanovic grabbed his first singles win of the year 6-2, 6-4 over Gabriel Castillo. Novansky completed the shutout with his victory over Matej Laibl 6-4, 6-4 in what was the Mocs' season opener.
It was more of the same in the second match against Chattanooga. Jovanovic and Sanchez Martinez surged out to a 6-0 doubles win over Kincses and Valentine. Baroni and Martinez Serrano captured the doubles point with a 6-2 victory against Lamb and Mudre while Ferrer Guimaraes and Tomic finished off Carr and Costillo 6-2.
Ferrer Guimaraes laid the foundation in the second round of singles as he toppled Laibl 6-1, 6-0. Novansky added another win for the Bulldogs by beating Mudre 6-2, 6-2 before Sanchez Martinez, ranked 103rd in singles, clinched his sixth-career match and first from the No. 1 position 6-2, 6-2 against Costillo.
Making his collegiate debut, freshman Bryan Hernandez Cortes scored a straight-set 6-3, 6-2 win over Carr while Tomic leveled Lamb 6-2, 6-2. No. 81 Martinez Serrano capped the day with his 6-3, 6-2 victory against Jupa.
"We're trying to figure out who's going to be a trustworthy guy for us at (the No. 6 position in the lineup)," Roberts said. "We have some good options. They might feel a little pressure like to step up and do well because they all want to be our six, but that's what happens when you have a deeper team this year. I think they're handling that opportunity well and they're getting a lot of matches in. That's why we're playing these doubleheaders to stretch out the lineup and see what we have."
Roberts will get another look at his lineup options on Sunday when the Bulldogs host another twin bill against Troy at 11 a.m. followed by Alabama State at 3 p.m.
Rula Tennis Pavillion | Starkville, Miss.
Jan. 17, 2025
Doubles
1. No. 9 Petar Jovanovic/Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. Cortland Grove/Jakub Jupa (UTC) 6-0
2. No. 20 Niccolo Baroni/Mario Martinez Serrano (MSU) def. Kristof Kincses/Walker Valentine (UTC) 6-2
3. Dusan Milanovic/Michal Novansky (MSU) def. Jaxon Lamb/Ryan Mudre (UTC) 6-3
Order of Finish: (2,1,3)
Singles
1. No. 45 Petar Jovanovic (MSU) def. Jakub Jupa (UTC) 6-3, 6-0
2. Dusan Milanovic (MSU) def. Gabriel Castillo (UTC) 6-2, 6-4
3. No. 72 Niccolo Baroni (MSU) def. Ryan Mudre (UTC) 6-0, 6-1
4. Michal Novansky (MSU) def. Matej Laibl (UTC) 6-4, 6-4
5. Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes (MSU) def. Kristof Kincses (UTC) 6-1, 6-4
6. Radomir Tomic (MSU) def. Ethan Carr (UTC) 6-2, 6-3
Order of Finish: (3,1,5,6,2,4)
No. 11 Mississippi State 7, Chattanooga 0
Rula Tennis Pavillion | Starkville, Miss.
Jan. 17, 2025
Doubles
1. No. 9 Petar Jovanovic/Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. Kristof Kincses/Walker Valentine (UTC) 6-0
2. No. 20 Niccolo Baroni/Mario Martinez Serrano (MSU) def. Jaxon Lamb/Ryan Mudre (UTC) 6-2
3. Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes/Radomir Tomic (MSU) def. Ethan Carr/Gabriel Castillo (UTC) 6-2
Order of Finish: (1,2,3)
Singles
1. No. 103 Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. Gabriel Castillo (UTC) 6-2, 6-2
2. No. 81 Mario Martinez Serrano (MSU) def. Jakub Jupa (UTC) 6-3, 6-2
3. Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes (MSU) def. Matej Laibl (UTC) 6-1, 6-0
4. Michal Novansky (MSU) def. Ryan Mudre (UTC) 6-2, 6-2
5. Bryan Hernandez Cortes (MSU) def. Ethan Carr (UTC) 6-3, 6-2
6. Radomir Tomic (MSU) def. Jaxon Lamb (UTC) 6-2, 6-2
Order of Finish: (3,4,1,5,6,2)
For more information on the Bulldog men's tennis program, visit HailState.com or search for "HailStateMT" on X, Instagram and Facebook.
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