BULLDOG BITS
It was 1998 the last time a Mississippi State men’s tennis team finished the regular season undefeated at home.
That changed Saturday as the seventh-ranked Bulldogs (15-1, 9-0 SEC) downed No. 44 Arkansas (1212, 3-7), 6-1 on a very cold Saturday after Friday’s originally-scheduled match was washed out. MSU’s win moved the Bulldogs to 10-0 at home and marked the continuation of its school-record start to league play. It was also the 11th-straight win for State, which is the longest since the 1979 squad won 18 in a row.
The Bulldogs made quick work of the Razorbacks in doubles, taking a pair of commanding wins. On court 2, MSU’s 42nd-ranked Niclas Braun and Giovanni Oradini notched their 10th-straight win on court 2 by a 6-2 mark against Arkansas’ Pedro Alonso and Jose Salazar. At the No. 2 doubles spot this season, the Bulldogs are 14-0.
On court 3, Florian Broska and Trevor Foshey earned a solid 6-1 triumph over the Razorback pair of Josh Howard-Tripp and Alex Reco to clinch the match. MSU’s 46th-ranked Nuno Borges and Strahinja Rakic were in a tight battle with No. 88 Oscar Mesquida and Adam Sanjurjo, with the Hogs leading 5-4 when the match was suspended.
Once again, the Bulldogs were dominant in singles, taking all six first sets. Braun was the first finisher of the day, taking a very quick 6-0, 6-2 win on court 4 against HowardTripp in a match that lasted under an hour. About 10 minutes later, the 83rd-ranked Rakic put the Bulldogs up 3-0 with a 6-0, 6-4 victory against Mesquida. Braun has now won seven straight while Rakic’s streak is at five.
The clincher came by way of Oradini once more, as the 23rd-ranked Bulldog took a 6-2, 6-2 victory against Sanjurjo on court 2 to seal the deal, although all matches were played out.
On court 6, MSU rookie Arvid Nordquist notched his second career singles victory, taking a decisive 6-2, 6-2 win against Razorback Jose Alonso. A brief mist then halted play on the remaining two courts for about 15 minutes.
After resuming action, the Bulldogs went up 6-0 with a win at the No. 5 position by Broska, who took down Pedro Alonso by a 6-3, 7-5 mark. The Hogs then notched their lone point of the day when the 38th-ranked Razorback Salazar took a tightlycontested three-set decision against State’s fourth-ranked Borges, winning 6-7(2), 6-3, 1-0(8).
MSU has now won 10 in a row against the Razorbacks and five straight in Starkville. In the series since 1973, the Bulldogs own a commanding 29-7 lead.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Saturday saw Mississippi State’s track and field teams post 13 new personal-best marks at the Crimson Tide Invitational.
Despite temperatures in the low 40s, the Bulldogs posted 13 top five finishes.
“The weather isn’t ideal, but it is what it is,” MSU head coach Steve Dudley said. “You still have to perform. This wasn’t our best day, but a few of those personal bests are very encouraging. We’re getting faster and we have a few athletes in a good position to qualify for nationals.”
The Bulldog men won two events on Saturday. Vince Castillo was the top collegiate finisher in the 400-meter hurdles, finishing in 50.23. Eryk Yunk won the 1500 meters in 3:58.79.
MSU had a strong showing in the distance events as well. Stephanie Peterson opened the day with a second-place finish in the 5000 meters, and Luke Zacharias broke his personal-best time on the men’s side of the event.
Faith Gilbert broke her personal best in the 100 meters with a windaided time of 11.98. Alexis Farley finished third and fourth in the long and triple jumps, respectively.
The Bulldogs took second and third in both the men’s 400 meters and 800 meters. Rasheed Tatham and Stephan James made the podium for the 400 meters, while Caden Foos and Aaron Phelps did so in the 800 meters.
MSU finished second in the men’s 4x400 meter relay to close the event.
Due to inclement weather conditions, the women’s tennis match between No. 32 Mississippi State and No. 7 Georgia slated for Saturday afternoon in Starkville was postponed.
State (15-7, 6-5 SEC) and Georgia (12-5, 7-3 SEC) will now meet Monday at 10 a.m. at MSU’s A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. Admission is free.
MSU is coming off a 4-2 victory over No. 31 Tennessee on Thursday while Georgia fell in a tight 4-3 decision at No. 9 Ole Miss Thursday night in their latest outing.