State Tennis Faces UAB In 2010 Spring Home Opener
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The 58th-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis team will face the UAB Blazers in its 2010 home opener played at MSU's home tennis courts at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. The Bulldogs have won six-straight home opening matches and 22 of the previous 23 home openers.
MSU brings in a .500 record of 3-3, most recently coming off a 5-2 win over No. 60 East Tennessee State at the Great Northwest Shootout in Seattle, Wash. UAB is 4-2 this season coming off a 4-0 shutout victory over New Orleans.
This is the 26th all-time meeting between the Bulldogs and the Blazers, with the Bulldogs holding a 24-1 advantage. MState has won 16-straight matches over UAB, with its only setback being a 5-2 loss in 1993. The Blazers were MSU's home opening match last season, where State was victorious, 5-2.
"It will be two good matches this weekend," said third-year head coach Per Nilsson. "We need to continue to improve every match."
MSU has three players in the national rankings led by, sophomore Louis Cant who boasts the best record of any Bulldog with a perfect 6-0 mark in dual match action. Sophomore George Coupland stands at 85th nationally and has played primarily at the No. 1 spot for MSU this season. Bulldog junior Antonio Lastre ranks 122nd and is an impressive 4-2, coming from the No. 4 position, with his most recent victory coming over then-ranked No. 51 Jesus Bandres of ETSU in a three-set battle. State has put together a 6-7 mark in doubles matches, with the Bulldog tandem of Cant and senior Chris Doerr posting three of those wins.
UAB freshman David Zimmerman has an unblemished record of 5-0 in dual match play, and sophomore Danny Manlow boasts a 3-0 mark. The Blazers have played a variety of doubles lineups, and the team of Moser and Thomas Petrich have managed to notch a 2-0 record since dual match action began.
Admission is free to all Mississippi State tennis matches and the match will begin at 2 p.m., beginning with the doubles point followed by six singles matches. Live stats will be available at www.mstateathletics.com.