Men's Tennis Set To Visit Florida, South Carolina
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Mississippi State's 31st-ranked men's tennis teamwill look to break a four-match losing skid this weekend, traveling to takeon 13th-ranked Florida and 56th-ranked South Carolina Friday and Sunday,respectively, in Southeastern Conference action.
State, currently 7-7 overall, 2-4 in SEC play, has dropped fourconsecutive league matches, all to current top 25 teams. MSU is paced bytwo-time, all-American senior Romain Ambert, currently ranked 22ndnationally in singles. Ambert has been hampered by an ankle ailment for thepast three weeks and his absence has had a big impact on the Bulldogs'results in that time span. His return is questionable for this weekend.
MSU will meet Florida Friday at 5 p.m. ET in Gainesville. The Gators(10-6, 3-3 SEC), coached by former Bulldog mentor Andy Jackson (1989-2001),are also looking to rebound, having dropped their last three matches, all totop 20 squads. UF is led by 17th-ranked senior Hamid Mirzadeh. Two otherGators are also in the top 100 nationally.
The Bulldogs and Gamecocks (12-8, 1-5 SEC) will face off at 1 p.m. ETSunday in Columbia. USC started the year 10-0, but has since dropped eightof its last 10 contests. The Gamecocks are led in the lineup by seniorMarcus Westman.
"This is a big weekend for us," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said."Florida and South Carolina will both be very tough challenges on the road.We really need to get a ?’W' on the board right now. We have had chances towin in the last few matches, but just haven't been able to pull any of themout. Hopefully, we can get Romain back in there for us soon."
Following this weekend's matches, State will be in action next Saturday,April 10, taking on third-ranked, arch-rival Mississippi in Oxford at 1 p.m.