Mississippi State’s tennis teams face a tricky test this weekend against Kentucky and Vanderbilt, with the women’s squad completing a three-match homestand as the men take to the road.Women
Coming off two losses last week to South Carolina and Florida, Mississippi State’s lady netters hope to reverse the trend this weekend with two home games against Kentucky and Vanderbilt.
Despite the Bulldogs’ 7-7 overall record, none of their wins have come against teams in the SEC.
MSU head coach Tracy Lane said this season’s conference is one of the strongest she has seen in her 12 years at State.
“The depth of our conference this year
Men
The Mississippi State men’s tennis squad travels north this weekend to face Kentucky and Vanderbilt.
The latter game in Nashville should prove the greater test for the 38th-ranked Bulldogs, as Vanderbilt sits just three places above them in the national rankings.
The 10-5 Commodores are coming off a win over 24th-ranked Alabama that ended a string of losses.
No. 50 Kentucky is 7-9 on the season but has momentum on its side after coming off two upsets over 22nd-ranked Auburn and No. 27 Notre Dame.
With seven SEC teams already in the top 25, State’s head coach Per Nilsson believes the conference to be back to its best.
“The SEC is back to where it used to be,” Nilsson said. “Every team presents a challenge. By the end of the year we should have eight or nine SEC teams in the top 25.”
State enters the weekend with an 8-6 overall record after winning four of its last five matches.
Senior Ivan Bjelica earned SEC Player of the Week honors after his recent display, which included an upset over Florida’s third-ranked Greg Ouellette.
“Bjelica’s been playing great and fighting hard in each match,” Nilsson said. “He’s looking healthy and fit and back to his best.”
With the high ranked Georgia, Florida, Tennessee and Alabama already out of the way, Nilsson said he expects his team to climb even higher in the rankings as the season continues.
“We’ve already played some of the top teams in the conference,” Nilsson said. “The rest of our schedule looks good for us, and we’re looking forward to the games to come.