It was a sunny weekend with warm temperatures, which led to a great weekend of play for the Mississippi State tennis team. The Bulldogs welcomed a trio of teams that included No. 72 UNC Wilmington, George Washington University, and Alcorn State University.
After a close 4-3 win over UNC Wilmington, the Bulldogs came back on Saturday and beat GWU 4-0 and Alcorn State 7-0. This weekend improved the No. 31 Bulldogs to a 3-2 record overall.
Head coach Matt Roberts noted the importance of notching wins like these against quality competition.
“These are the type of wins we need right now against solid teams,” Roberts said. “The matches allow us to work on some things in a competitive environment, so we can build on it going further into the season.”
To start off the match against UNC Wilmington on Saturday, Niclas Braun and Nuno Borges beat two of the Seahawks 6-2. Soon after, Trevor Foshey and Luka Sucevic won their doublest match 7-6(5) to secure the doubles point and give MSU the 1-0 lead.
In singles, Braun defeated his opponent 6-0, 6-2. Soon after, Borges beat his 6-1, 6-4 and extended MSU’s lead to 3-0. Sucevic would then drop a three round match 6-1, 2-6, 6-2 but Rishab Agarwal clinched the match with a 6-4, 6-4 win.
After the match was clinched, Mate Cutura dropped his match 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 and Strahinja Rakic dropped his match 6-2, 7-6(5).
To start Sunday afternoon off, GWU rolled into town and tried to knock off MSU. However, the Bulldogs were streaking.
To start, Agarwal and Sucevic knocked off their doubles opponents 6-2. Borges and Braun then defeated their opponents 6-4. Since that clinched the point for MSU, Cutura and Fosheys’ match was suspended.
In singles play, Agarwal won 6-1, 6-1, Rakic won 6-1, 6-2, and Braun won 6-1, 7-6(3) to clinch the 4-0 victory. Lucas Sanchez, Borges, and Cuturas’ matches were suspended after the win was clinched. The victory put MSU at a 2-2 overall record.
In the later game that afternoon, Alcorn traveled to Starkville. Borges and Braun once again dominated their doubles match, winning 6-1 while Agarwal and Sucevic also defeated their opponents 6-1. Cutura and Foshey led 4-2 when their match was suspended while MSU grabbed the 1-0 lead heading into singles.
The Bulldogs head coach said he was impressed with his team’s performance Sunday.
“For our teams to be in control on all three courts, with different pairings, was really good for our confidence,” he said after the team’s effort in doubles.
In the first game of singles, Borges won by disqualification after his opponent fell and busted his chin while also hurting his wrist. That gave MSU the 2-0 lead.
Following the first singles win, Sucevic downed his opponent 6-0, 6-1. The winning did not stop there, as Rakic won 6-0, 6-2, Braun won 6-0, 6-2, Agarwal clinched a touch match 6-3, 6-2, and Sanchez finished the last match of the day with a 6-1, 6-2 victory. Mississippi State will return to action this Saturday for another doubleheader as they host Samford at 11 a.m. and Alabama Sate at 5 p.m.
