Mississippi State
NC State
Cutura Clinches As No. 21 MSU Rallies Past No. 27 N.C. State, 4-3
January 24, 2015 | Men's Tennis
BERKELEY, Calif. – For a moment, things looked to be in favor of the North Carolina State Wolfpack. Then the Bulldogs kicked it into overdrive, putting together a late rally to seal their first major victory of the 2015 season under the California sun.
Behind a late third-set victory from Mate Cutura, the 21st-ranked Mississippi State men's tennis Bulldogs (3-0) downed the No. 27 N.C. State Wolfpack (3-1), 4-3 in the opening round of the 2015 ITA Kickoff Weekend Friday afternoon in Berkeley, Calif.
“It was a crazy match,” MSU coach Matt Roberts said. “Definitely teaches our guys what a dual match is all about. There were a lot of ups and downs in this match and I think they're now going to realize how important every game, every section of the match is. Our young guys are starting to realize how important that is.”
Cutura's win was the climax of a Bulldog rally from 2-0 down, sparked by a straight-sets win from Florian Lakat at the top spot of the lineup. From there, MSU went on to capture three of the remaining four matches to earn the win in the program's first-ever meeting with the Wolfpack.
The win also marks the Bulldogs' fifth-straight win in ITA Kickoff Weekend play and the seventh victory in the last eight matches in the event.
The thriller sets up a Saturday showdown with host No. 15 California (a 4-2 winner over No. 30 Harvard Friday) for the right to go to the ITA National Indoors Feb. 13-16 in Chicago, Ill. First serve between the two Friday victors is set for 3 p.m. CT.
Beginning the day was a tight doubles contest between the two squads that ended in favor of N.C. State. MSU would strike first, as Cutura and Tassilo Schmid picked up a 6-3 victory against the Wolfpack's Simon Norenius and Austin Powell on court two. N.C. State would answer, evening the playing field with a 6-4 victory on court three from Nick Horton and Thomas Wiegel against MSU's Julian Cash and Robin Haden.
The clincher came on court one, as play was pushed to a deciding tiebreaker. The Bulldog duo of Lakat and Juan Cruz Estevarena would start the breaker up 3-1, but the No. 19 Wolfpack team of Ian Dempster and Robbie Mudge stormed back to take the win, 7-6(4), putting N.C. State up 1-0 in the overall match.
The Wolfpack rode the momentum of the doubles win to start out singles play, as No. 123 Mudge took a 6-1, 6-3 victory from MSU's No. 63 Schmid on court two, putting N.C. State up 2-0.
Despite the deficit, Lakat would not relent at the top spot. After taking a thrilling first set, 7-6(5), the reigning SEC Freshman of the Year began to cruise in the second set on his way to a 7-6(5), 6-2 victory against N.C. State's No. 51 Powell. However, the Bulldogs would find themselves in a hole, as matches on courts three, four and six were all down a break at 2-0 in the third set.
Then came the rally. In quick succession, Estevarena and Rishab Agarwal would reel off wins. Estevarena, who was down 2-0 on three, would not drop another game, going on to upset No. 38 Horton 6-4, 0-6, 6-2. Agarwal followed close behind, capturing a 6-4, 7-6(5) victory on court five to thrust the Bulldogs into the lead, 3-2.
N.C. State would tie the match with a 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 victory on court six by Wiegel against MSU's Haden. Despite the loss, the Bulldogs credited Haden's second-set win for being crucial in keeping the momentum in favor of the Maroon and White.
“Tanner [Stump] and I preach team unity and mental toughness in each practice,” Roberts said. “We hold each other accountable for how we train so that when we are in this dual match situation, we're going to find a way out and work together. And major credit to Robin [Haden] for his match. He lost that first set, but kept fighting, forced a third and brought a lot of life back into the guys. Without him, we don't win this match.”
From there, it all came down to court four. After losing a break lead at 5-3, Cutura found himself staring down a tiebreaker with N.C. State's Beck Bond up 40-15 and serving. Cutura battled back to bring the game to deuce, where Bond would double fault to give the Bulldogs their first ranked victory of the season.
“It was very exciting and a lot of pressure all at the same time,” Cutura said. “Seeing all the guys fight next to you gives you a lot of confidence. Robbie, Rishab and [Juan] Cruz all made a big push at the end, which gave me a lot of confidence and momentum. It was my biggest dream in college to clinch a match with it being very tight in the third set. It came very early in my Mississippi State career and I couldn't be happier.”
For more information on Mississippi State men's tennis and updates, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateMT.
No. 21 Mississippi State 4, No. 27 North Carolina State 3
January 23, 2014 – I.W. Hellman Tennis Center – Berkeley, Calif.
Doubles
1. No. 19 Ian Dempster/Robbie Mudge (NCST) def. Juan Cruz Estevarena/Florian Lakat (MSU) 7-6(4)
2. Mate Cutura/Tassilo Schmid (MSU) def. Simon Norenius/Austin Powell (NCST) 6-3
3. Nick Horton/Thomas Wiegel (NCST) def. Julian Cash/Robin Haden (MSU) 6-4
Singles
1. Lakat (MSU) def. No. 51 Powell (NCST) 7-6(5), 6-2
2. No. 123 Mudge (NCST) def. No. 63 Schmid (MSU) 6-1, 6-3
3. Estevarena (MSU) def. No. 39 Horton (NCST) 6-4, 0-6, 6-2
4. Cutura (MSU) def. Beck Bond (NCST) 6-4, 3-6, 7-5
5. Agarwal (MSU) def. Norenius (NCST) 6-4, 7-6(5)
6. Wiegel (NCST) def. Haden (MSU) 6-1, 3-6, 6-4
Order of finish… Doubles (2,3,1)… Singles (2,1,3,5,6,4)
Players Mentioned
