No. 20 MSU Triumphs Over No. 18 South Carolina

Sunday, March 23

Starkville

1 p.m.

Mississippi State

South Carolina

Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics

No. 20 MSU Triumphs Over No. 18 South Carolina

March 23, 2025 | Men's Tennis

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By: Peyton Burkhalter, Student Assistant

STARKVILLE – The Mississippi State men's tennis team put on a show at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre on Sunday by defeating No. 18 South Carolina, 4-3.

We have secured the doubles point in every single SEC match so far this season, and that did not change today. Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez picked up their 10^th ranked win of the season, and Niccolo Baroni and Mario Martinez Serrano clinched the doubles point while tacking on a ranked win of their own. Jovanovic and Sanchez Martinez are now 7-0 in SEC doubles play, which is the best start in their career together.

Straight set victories by Jovanovic and Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes set Sanchez Martinez up for the clincher over Casey Hoole on line one, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.

Records
No. 20 Mississippi State (15-4, 5-3 SEC)
No. 18 South Carolina (13-5, 7-2 SEC)

Match Notes

Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez earned their 10th ranked win of the year as they dominated South Carolina's duo of No. 15 Lucas Andrade Da Silva and Connor Thomson, 6-1. It was also the third highest ranked victory of the year for them.
Jovanovic and Sanchez Martinez took third place outright in most doubles wins in school history (48) with their win today. They now only need two more to tie second place all-time, Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini.
Jovanovic and Sanchez Martinez are now 7-0 in SEC doubles play and extended their win streak to seven, which is a career best for the All-American duo.
Niccolo Baroni and Mario Martinez Serrano clinched the doubles point for the Bulldogs, bringing them to eight on the year. This ties a team-high with Jovanovic and Sanchez Martinez.
Baroni and Martinez Serrano earned their second ranked win of the year against No. 84 Atakan Karahan and Jelani Sarr, defeating the pair 6-4.
Sanchez Martinez extended his win streak to four and improved his SEC record to 5-2 with his three-set singles victory over Casey Hoole, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.

Up Next
No. 20 MSU will go up against No. 36 Arkansas at 3 p.m. on Thursday, Mar. 27 at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre.

Match Results
Doubles:
1. No. 4 Petar Jovanovic/Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. No. 15 Lucas Andrade Da Silva/Connor Thomson (USC) 6-1
2. No. 39 Niccolo Baroni/Mario Martinez Serrano (MSU) def. No. 84 Atakan Karahan/Jelani Sarr (USC) 6-4
3. Sean Daryabeigi/Casey Hoole (USC) def. Dusan Milanovic/Michal Novansky (MSU) 6-4
Order of finish: (1,3,2)

Singles:
1. No. 38 Benito Snachez Martinez (MSU) def. Casey Hoole (USC) 6-3, 4-6, 6-2
2. No. 100 Petar Jovanovic (MSU) def. Lucas Andrade Da Silva (USC) 6-2, 7-5
3. No. 54 Connor Thomson (USC) def. No. 117 Niccolo Baroni (MSU) 6-4, 7-6(7)
4. No. 82 Sean Daryabeigi (USC) def. No. 95 Mario Martinez Serrano (MSU) 6-7(5), 7-6(2), 0-1[10]
5. Atakan Karahan (USC) def. Dusan Milanovic (MSU) 7-6(5), 6-2
6. Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes (MSU) def. Gabe Avram (USC) 6-3, 6-2
Order of finish: (6,2,5,3,1,4)

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