Mississippi State
LSU
No. 19 Bulldogs Earn SEC Home Opening Victory
February 27, 2025 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE – No. 19 Mississippi State took down LSU, 6-1, in its SEC home opener.
The Bulldogs clinched the doubles point and won their first singles match courtesy of a 6-1, 6-0 win by Petar Jovanovic. However, LSU took the next point defeating Dusan Milanovic 6-2, 6-2 to cut the Bulldog lead to 2-1. State responded winning four straight matches to give MSU a 6-1 win.
Records: Mississippi State 12-2 (2-1 SEC) // LSU 8-6 (0-2 SEC)
Quotable
MSU Head Coach Matt Roberts
"Today was a good match. LSU is a lot better than their ranking. They competed well, and we knew it would be a tricky match because they were trying to get ranked wins to get into the tournament, so we knew they would be hungry.
I thought we did a good job on two of the three courts in doubles. It's tough when two of the three courts are doing well and one is not. But with Mario going down love-30 and finding a way to come back and clinch the double point for us was huge. I'm just really proud of Mario and how he came back.
I'm really happy for Pete. He was clinical today and took care of business at No. 1 singles. He lost two tough matches last week, but that's what I love about him: He doesn't let losses affect his confidence, and he just gets right back to work."
"I thought it was a good match. We were prepared to play today. We were ready for it; we were really in a zone. We knew LSU was going to come for us, and we knew they were hungry. We all did a good job of handling that pressure."
Match Notes:
- Matt Roberts improves to 199-80 overall and 128-25 at home. He is currently the longest-tenured head coach at State.
- No. 10 Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez reached the impressive mark of 45 career victories together, which is fourth-place all-time in school history.
- Jovanovic and Sanchez Martinez earned a 6-2 win over LSU's 27th-ranked tandem of Aleksi Lofman and Julien Penzlin. It was their sixth win over a ranked foe this season and the 19th of their careers playing together.
- No. 29 Niccolo Baroni and Mario Martinez Serrano extended their doubles win streak to five.
- No. 85 Mario Martinez Serrano's win is also his eigth in a row in singles play.
Next Up: The Bulldogs hit the road to take on No. 4 Texas on March 6 at 6 p.m. CT.
No. 29 Mississippi State 6, LSU 1
A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre | Starkville, Miss.
Feb. 27, 2025
Doubles:
1. No. 10 Petar Jovanovic/Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. No. 27 Aleksi Lofman/Julien Penzlin (LSU) 6-2
2. No. 29 Niccolo Baroni/Mario Martinez Serrano (MSU) def. Andrej Loncarevic/Sasa Markovic (LSU) 6-3
3. Brock Anderson/Alessio Vasquez (LSU) vs. Dusan Milanovic/Michal Novansky 5-2, unfinished
Order of finish: (1,2)
Singles:
1. No. 67 Petar Jovanovic (MSU) def. Sasa Markovic (LSU) 6-1, 6-0
2. No. 65 Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. Alessio Vasquez (LSU) 6-1, 7-5
3. No. 125 Julien Penzlin (LSU) def. Dusan Milanovic (MSU) 6-2, 6-2
4. No. 115 Niccolo Baroni (MSU) def. Aleksi Lofman (LSU) 6-7(3), 7-5, 1-0[7]
5. No. 85 Mario Martinez Serrano (MSU) def. Andrej Loncarevic (LSU) 6-3, 6-4
6. Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes (MSU) def. Brock Anderson (LSU) 1-6, 6-4, 1-0[5]
Order of finish: (1,3,5,2,6,4)
For more information on the Bulldog men's tennis program, visit HailState.com or search for "HailStateMT" on X, Instagram and Facebook.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,2
#1 Singles Match
#2 Singles Match
#3 Singles Match
#4 Singles Match
#5 Singles Match
#6 Singles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3,5,2,6,4
Players Mentioned
