Heading into the third set, Alberto Colas, a freshman from Zaragoza, Spain, was all square in his match and Mississippi State University led 3-2 over the University of Miami. 

Colas battled through a 1-6 defeat in the second set. He clinched the match against Miami in the third set winning 6-3 and giving MSU a 4-2 win. At the end of Colas’ match, Giovanni Oradini was trailing 7-6 in the third set and was tied 4-4 on the tiebreaker. His match was suspended. 

Head coach Matt Roberts said the day was testing for MSU. According to a press release from the MSU Athletic Department, they had to fight off a comeback from Miami who was down a point after losing the doubles.

“Today was a tough challenge and our guys stepped up in every way,” Roberts said. 

The Hurricanes kept MSU close in doubles, only losing 6-4 on courts three and one. Court two was suspended with Miami leading 3-5.  

In singles, Miami had two courts battling it out in the third and final set, but Cola was able to hang on and clinch the victory. Roberts said the win was not easy.  

“They played with so much belief and energy from the first point to the last point,” Roberts said. “Miami has a great team. Nothing was easy today and our team knew they would have to earn everything.” 

The Bulldogs lost three seniors from last year and have five freshmen on the team. Two juniors, Florian Broska and Stedman Strickland, a sophomore, Gregor Ramskogler,  and a senior Giovanni Oradini, make up the rest of the four players. Having a very young team means that they still have not found their identity as a team. 

 Roberts said he likes the way the team is moving.  MSU will play Tulane Friday afternoon at 3 p.m.

“We are building our team’s identity and trust in one another,” Roberts said. “Today was a great test, and I like the direction this young group is going.”