Netmen Climb To 26th Nationally; Head To Auburn, Alabama This Weekend
State, 7-3 overall, upended 12th-ranked Kentucky last Friday and followed that victory with a triumph over 31st-ranked Vanderbilt Sunday. The Bulldogs are led by the 32nd-ranked doubles team of Luiz Carvalho and Jose-Carlos Pinto. In singles, junior Florent Girod is a perfect 8-0 this season in team competition. True freshman Pierre Mouillon is 6-2 overall on the season and he and Pinto have each claimed wins in their last four singles contests.
Auburn will bring an 8-2 mark into Friday's matchup on the Plains. The Tigers' two losses both came last weekend in their SEC openers, as they fell on the road in tough challenges at 18th-ranked Tennessee and eighth-ranked Georgia. AU is led by senior Gabor Zoltan Pelva, currently ranked 67th nationally in singles. Pelva has held top 10 rankings during his career. Pelva and partner Alex Schweizer are ranked 21st in the country in doubles.
Alabama will enter its home match with Mississippi Friday with a 5-6 overall mark, 0-2 in SEC play. Like Auburn, the Crimson Tide suffered losses to Tennessee and Georgia last weekend to open the league slate. UA is paced by sophomore Luigi D'Agord who is rated 73rd in the nation in singles at present. Classmate Joseph Jung is 99th.
"As is every weekend in the SEC, this weekend we have two more tough matchups in Auburn and Alabama," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said. "Both of them have very talented teams and will be tough to beat on the road. We will have to continue to play well if we are to get a win over either of them."
Following this weekend's play, State will have two weeks off before continuing its five-match roadswing through the SEC. After the break, MSU will face No. 6 Georgia (March 25), No. 21 Tennessee (March 27) and No. 49 Arkansas (Apr. 1) all on the road. The Bulldogs return home Apr. 3 to entertain No. 17 LSU.