No. 19 MSU Set for Battle Against LSU

STARKVILLE – The 19^th-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs return home after their two-match SEC road trip.

State will face the LSU Tigers (8-5, 0-2 SEC) on Thursday, February 27, at 3 p.m. at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. This is Mississippi State's third SEC match in six days.

Rankings: Singles – MSU - Benito Sanchez Martinez (65), Petar Jovanovic (67), Mario Martinez Serrano (85), Niccolo Baroni (115) LSU – Julien Penzlin (125) Doubles – MSU – Jovanovic/Sanchez Martinez (10), Baroni/Martinez Serrano (29) LSU – Aleksi Lofman/Penzlin (27)

Series History: Mississippi State trails in the series against LSU, 23-36, and 11-15 in Starkville.
However, LSU has not won a match in Starkville since the 2010 season, and the Bulldogs have won four of the past five matchups against the Tigers.

Last Meeting: MSU won the last meeting 4-3 against LSU in Starkville in 2024. Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez helped secure the doubles point, and Dusan Milanovic, Radomir Tomic and Nemanja Malesevic all contributed singles wins last year in Baton Rouge.

Last Time Out: Mississippi State went 1-1 in their grueling SEC road trip lineup.

MSU went up against No. 16 Tennessee on Saturday and put on an impressive performance, clinching the match at 4-1 before eventually falling on two other courts to make the final score 4-3.

The Bulldogs had to make a quick turnaround to face No. 28 Kentucky on Monday morning. They fought hard to clinch the doubles point, but it was not enough as they fell to Kentucky, 2-4.

MSU Leaders: Overall singles wins – Baroni (14), Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes (14), Martinez Serrano (14), Jovanovic (13), Michal Novansky (13) Singles wins vs. ranked opponents – Sanchez Martinez (6) Match clinches – Ferrer Guimaraes (3), Serrano (3). Overall doubles wins – Jovanovic/Sanchez Martinez (18) Doubles wins vs. ranked opponents – Jovanovic/Sanchez Martinez (6) Doubles clinches – Baroni/Martinez Serrano (5), Jovanovic/Sanchez Martinez (5).

Notes to Know:

Mississippi State is in its 102nd season of men's tennis. The program played its first tennis match in 1907 and has competed every year since 1946.
Matt Roberts is in his 13th season at MSU and 11th as the Bulldogs' head coach. Roberts has compiled a 198-80 overall record and a 127-25 mark at home. He is currently the longest-tenured head coach at State.
The Bulldogs have made 13 consecutive appearances in the NCAA Championships and have reached the Sweet 16 in five of the past six seasons.
Men's tennis posted a 3.68 grade point average during the fall semester. It was the highest team GPA of any sport at Mississippi State.
State is tied for the most overall wins (11) and best winning percentage (.846) in the SEC
Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez have 44 career doubles wins together, which is good for sole possession of fourth-place all-time in school history. They need three more wins to tie George Coupland and Artem IIyshin for third place.
Michal Novansky is riding a career and team-best 11-match winning streak in singles. He has not lost in singles during dual match play since April 20, 2023.

For more information on the Bulldog men's tennis program, visit HailState.com or search for "HailStateMT" on X, Instagram and Facebook.

Mississippi State University Athletics

No. 19 MSU Set for Battle Against LSU

Players Mentioned

Niccolo Baroni

Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes

Petar Jovanovic

Nemanja Malesevic

Mario Martinez Serrano

Dusan Milanovic

Michal Novansky

Benito Sanchez Martinez

Radomir Tomic

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