#21 Bulldog Netmen To Host South Alabama Friday; Tulane Match Cancelled
The Bulldogs enter the match with a 1-1 record on the season. Stateopened its season with a 4-0 win over UAB but fell to fifth-rankedMississippi last week at the River Hills Cup in Jackson.
The Jaguars are 5-0 this season including 7-0 shutout wins over FloridaAtlantic, Stetson, Tennessee Tech and Troy and a 5-1 win over North Florida.
MSU and USA have met 16 times in the modern era (since 1969) with theBulldogs holding a 10-6 advantage. Of the six non-SEC home matches Statehas lost in its last 71 non-league home affairs, South Alabama hasrepresented two of those losses (2001, 2003). The Bulldogs took a 5-2decision over USA last season.
"South Alabama is a well-coached team," said MSU head coach SylvainGuichard. "We know that they are a good team and we respect them. They willcome in a give us a good battle."
Following Friday's match, MSU will begin preparations for SEC play whichbegins March 3 when the Bulldogs travel to Columbia, S.C., to take on10th-ranked South Carolina, followed by a March 5 matchup with top-rankedFlorida in Gainesville.
State's match with Tulane, which had been scheduled for this Sunday Feb.19, will not be played. The match was cancelled earlier in the semester whenTulane announced that it had suspended competition by several of its sportsdue to the effects of Hurricane Katrina.