MSU Netters Host #16 LSU Friday In Final Home Weekend
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State's 49th-ranked men's tennis team will open its final home weekend Friday, as it host 16th-ranked LSU at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre on the MSU campus. Match time is slated for a 2 p.m. CT start.
The Bulldogs, 8-8 this season, will be looking to up their current home mark of 6-1 and look to match the most home wins since 2005 when MSU had seven.
A pair of Bulldog seniors in Ivan Bjelica and Philippe Frayssinoux lead the charge for MSU. Bjelica moved up to 26th in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association's poll this past week while Frayssinoux is 57th. Bjelica is 5-2 in Southeastern Conference matches this season and has won four of his last five. Having won six of his last seven matches, Frayssinoux leads the team with 22 wins this season and has evened his conference mark at 4-4. Junior Ryan Farlow has won six of his last seven and has notched 21 total victories this season.
LSU enters Friday's match with an 11-6 overall record. The Tigers are coming off a victory over eighth-ranked Florida last weekend at home and are winners in three of their last five matches. LSU is led by 47th-ranked Michael Venus and 118th-ranked Jan Zelezny. Venus is 9-6 in dual match play while Zelezny is has posted 19 overall wins this year. In doubles, the team of Venus and James Cluskey is ranked 30th nationally.
Following Friday's match, MSU will conclude its home schedule Sunday, April 6 as the Bulldogs play host to Arkansas for senior day. Sunday's match is set for a 1 p.m. CT.