Mississippi State
Texas A&M
No. 35 MSU Men?s Tennis Falls To No. 7 Texas A&M In 4-1 Thriller
March 21, 2015 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Under the lights of the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, the No. 35 Mississippi State Bulldogs (12-5, 3-2 SEC) fell 4-1 to the No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies (10-3, 5-1 SEC) in one of the more thrilling matches of the 2015 season.
The Friday showdown ended with a deceiving final score, as two matches were seemingly minutes away from clinching in favor of the Bulldogs. After State took doubles with wins on courts one and three, A&M responded with singles wins on two, three, one and six to clinch the victory.
“That was a tough match, but still can't say enough about our guys and their fight against the No. 7 team in the nation,” MSU coach Matt Roberts said. “We had a great crowd and a lot of energy, but it was a back-and-forth match and Texas A&M pulled it out.”
Despite the loss, MSU kept its doubles success rolling, picking up the match's opening point for the 12th time in the last 13 matches. The Bulldogs earned several early breaks to gain the momentum in tandem play, pushing forward to a 1-0 lead. State's Juan Cruz Estevarena and Robin Haden kicked things off with a 6-3 defeat of TAMU's A.J. Catanzariti and Arthur Rinderknech on court three.
It was then a race to see which court could finish first, with the edge going to the No. 46 duo of Julian Cash and Florian Lakat, who defeated A&M's No. 9 team of Harrison Adams and Shane Vinsant, 6-4 for the duo's highest ranked win of the season.
Play on court two was suspended at the clinch, with State's Mate Cutura and Tassilo Schmid leading the Aggies' No. 26 team of Jeremy Efferding and Jordan Szabo 5-4.
Then the match entered the thriller that was singles play, which saw five of the six contests go into three sets.
The only match to avoid a deciding set was on court two, where A&M's No. 65 Efferding defeated MSU's Estevarena 6-2, 6-3 to tie the contest up at 1-1. From there, the back-and-forth play began.
Both sides split the match's first sets, with MSU taking its necessary three on courts three, four and six. Courts one and six needed tiebreakers to decide the opening frame, with No. 112 Lakat dropping his 7-6(6) at the top spot, but Cash sealing his 7-6(4) on six.
The Aggies would vault into the lead with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 victory on court four from No. 89 Catanzariti against MSU's No. 105 Schmid.
The score remained 2-1 in favor of Texas A&M for nearly an hour as the two sides scratched and clawed for momentum. MSU forced a third set on courts one and five, but the Aggies did the same on three and six, pushing the team match to the brink. With MSU's Cutura a game away from victory on court three and Agarwal one point in his tiebreaker from winning, A&M would seal the match with wins at one and six in quick succession.
No. 71 Vinsant downed MSU's No. 112 Lakat 7-6(6), 4-6, 6-3, despite the State sophomore's attempt to rally from down a break. On court six, Cash fought back from down a break to tie the set at 5-5, but couldn't keep momentum in his favor, falling 6-7(4), 7-5, 7-5 to A&M's Max Lunkin.
At the clinch, Cutura was up 7-5, 5-7, 6-5 and a break against the Aggies' Rinderknech, while Agarwal was at match point against TAMU's Jordi Arconada 4-6, 6-4, 6-6(8-7) on five.
“A&M had a few more top 10 matches under their belt this season and it showed as they played the big points well,” Roberts said. “Now we have to get our focus on LSU for this Sunday.”
MSU will now turn its attention to the 23rd-ranked Tigers, who visit the Pitts Tennis Centre on Sunday, March 22. First serve is set for 1 p.m. CT. The Bulldogs invite all Greek members to attend, with the largest-attending fraternity and sorority at the end of the season receiving prizes. Also, fans will receive free MSU souvenir drinking glasses while supplies last.
Due to the threat of rain throughout the day, fans should consult HailStateMT on Twitter and HailState.com for updates on the match's status.
For more information on Mississippi State men's tennis and updates, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateMT.
No. 7 Texas A&M 4, No. 35 Mississippi State 1
March 20, 2015 – A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre – Starkville, Miss.
Doubles
1. No. 46 Julian Cash/Florian Lakat (MSU) def. No. 9 Harrison Adams/Shane Vinsant (TAMU) 6-4
2. Mate Cutura/Tassilo Schmid (MSU) vs. No. 26 Jeremy Efferding/Jordan Szabo (TAMU) 5-4(susp.)
3. Juan Cruz Estevarena/Robin Haden (MSU) def. A.J. Catanzariti/Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) 6-3
Singles
1. No. 71 Vinsant (TAMU) def. No. 112 Lakat (MSU) 7-6(6), 4-6, 6-3
2. No. 65 Efferding (TAMU) def. Estevarena (MSU) 6-2, 6-3
3. Cutura (MSU) vs. Rinderknech (TAMU) 7-5, 5-7, 6-5(susp.)
4. No. 89 Catanzariti (TAMU) def. No. 105 Schmid (MSU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-0
5. Rishab Agarwal (MSU) vs. Jordi Arconada (TAMU) 4-6, 6-4, 6-6(8-7)(susp.)
6. Max Lunkin (TAMU) def. Cash (MSU) 6-7(4), 7-5, 7-5
Order of finish… Doubles (3,1)… Singles (2,3,1,6)
Players Mentioned
