No. 11 State Tennis Has 13th Consecutive Win

Mississippi State’s men’s tennis team is back in action.

No. 11 Mississippi State opened its spring season with a 7-0 victory over Samford on Sunday at State’s Rula Tennis Pavilion.

The win marked MSU’s 13th consecutive triumph over Samford, dating back to 1975, and extended the Bulldogs’ streak of shutouts in the series to eight. Additionally, the victory extended Mississippi State’s opening-match win streak to nine.

“I’m proud of the team and how we competed,” said head coach Matt Roberts. “It’s a solid start, and our hard work pays off. We played pretty clean tennis.”

Mississippi State got off to a strong start by sweeping the doubles matches. Dusan Milanovic and Michal Novansky claimed the first win with a 6-1 scoreline against Sebastian Harrison and Victorio Sardinha. No. 9 Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez secured the doubles point with a 6-2 win over Hayden Menon and Sandeep Mohandoss. This marked the ninth time MSU’s two-time All-Americans have clinched the doubles point together.

The momentum carried into singles play, where No. 72 Niccolo Baroni made quick work of Menon, winning 6-0, 6-0, earning his first dual match singles win. Jovanovic, ranked 45th, followed with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Mohandoss, and No. 81 Mario Martinez Serrano sealed the match for MSU with a 6-1, 6-0 victory against J.B. Pickard. It was Martinez Serrano’s first match-clinching win for the Bulldogs after transferring from Troy, where he earned two All-Conference honors.

“It felt really good,” Martinez Serrano said. “All the work we’ve put in over the past four months is paying off. Everyone played well. We all competed hard and gave our best every day.”

No. 103 Sanchez Martinez kept the momentum going with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Darcy Nicholls, and Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes followed with a 6-1, 6-1 victory against Sardinha. Novansky, who was limited to doubles last season due to injury, completed the shutout with a 7-5, 6-2 win over Harrison, marking his first dual-match singles victory since March 26, 2023.

“It was great for everyone to get a match against a solid team,” Roberts said. “I thought we came out ready and executed well across the board. Niccolo and Mario were a bit nervous in doubles but responded well in singles. I was also really happy with Petar and Benito’s strong performances in both doubles and singles. It’s great to see Mikey get his first singles win since his surgery.”

Mississippi State will be back in action on Friday, hosting Chattanooga for a doubleheader at noon and 4 p.m.

Author administrator Corinne Ellington