Mississippi State
Ole Miss
Schmid Clinches No. 34 MSU?s 4-1 Upset Of No. 13 Ole Miss
March 26, 2015 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – With the Starkville sun setting behind the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, senior Tassilo Schmid finished his final regular season match against Ole Miss by clinching Mississippi State's (13-5, 4-2 SEC) 4-1 upset of the 13th-ranked Rebels (12-5, 4-2 SEC) on Wednesday.
“It's great for our team, our fans and our program for everyone to see how we compete and the atmosphere we bring out here,” MSU coach Matt Roberts said. “It's really a great day for everyone to see what Mississippi State tennis is all about with this young team.”
The Bulldogs used the doubles point, combined with wins from Mate Cutura, Rishab Agarwal and a thrilling comeback victory from the 122nd-ranked Schmid to down their in-state rivals. MSU has now won seven of its last nine against UM and six of its last eight for the 2015 season.
“It means a lot to me to clinch against Ole Miss in my senior season,” Schmid said. “Down 5-3 and a break, I just kept thinking 'Man, this is not over yet.' I kept playing and bringing energy for my teammates still on the court and, next thing you know, I had saved three match points and ended up clinching.”
Home and doubles dominance continues to be a theme for the Bulldogs. State clinched its 22nd win in the last 25 home matches, while winning the doubles point for the 13th time in the last 14 matches, moving to 12-3 this season when doing so.
As one would expect the in-state battle between the Bulldogs and Rebels to go, Wednesday's match was a fierce battle. Doubles play kicked off with all three courts entering tight battles before the 14th-ranked MSU duo of Julian Cash and Florian Lakat took a break lead en route to a 6-4 victory against UM's Zvonimir Babic and Nik Scholtz at No. 1.
Courts two and three both then entered tiebreakers. Court three was first into the breaker and ended up being the clincher, as MSU's Juan Cruz Estevarena and Robin Haden cruised to a 7-6(2) win against the Rebels' William Kallberg and Grey Hamilton.
Play on court two was suspended at the clinch, with Mate Cutura and Tassilo Schmid and UM's 45th-ranked Gustav Hansson and Stefan Lindmark in tiebreak play at 6-all.
Both squads struggled for momentum to start singles play, eventually ending up splitting all six first sets at three apiece. MSU seemed to have the upper hand with straight-set wins on courts three and five to go ahead 3-0 in the match. Cutura was the first off, with a 6-3, 6-4 victory on court three against UM's Hansson. Agarwal followed suit on court five with a 6-3, 6-1 win against the Rebels' Ricardo Jorge.
No. 108 Florian Lakat was the final first set to finish in the match, as he battled with 15th-ranked Scholtz into a tiebreaker. The fight continued from there, with each side refusing to budge before Lakat slid in with a slice shot that Scholtz couldn't return to take the set 7-6(7).
Lakat would jump ahead by a break, 3-0, to start the second set, seemingly putting MSU in the driver's seat. However, Scholtz would rally back, eventually pushing that set into another tiebreaker.
Meanwhile on courts two and four, the Bulldogs were rallying from a set down to force thirds, as Estevarena (court two) and No. 122 Schmid (court four) took 6-4 and 7-6(3) wins, respectively.
Ole Miss would finally get on the board on court six, as Cash fell to the Rebels' Vinod Gowda 7-5, 6-4 to cut MSU's lead to 3-1. UM would look to steal the momentum from there, up a break in the third on No. 4 and the match on No. 2 on serve.
Facing near defeat, Schmid hit overdrive, determined that his final regular season match against the Rebels would not go down in the record books as a loss.
Actually down 5-2 in the deciding set, Schmid held, broke while fighting off three match points, and then held again for 5-all. He then kept his foot on the gas to pull out the win, breaking to go up 6-5 and try to serve out the match.
At the same moment, Schmid and Esteverena had match point on their racquets. UM's Kallberg hit his final shot wide, sending Schmid to the ground in celebration with the clinching point, soon to be rushed by his teammates.
“It was unreal today, between the feeling on the court and the crowd in the stands,” Schmid said. “It was something very special in my last season of my college career.”
Play on courts 1 and 2 was suspended at the clinch. At No. 2, Estevarena and UM's No. 84 Lindmark were at 3-6, 6-4, 5-5 at the end of the match. No. 108 Lakat and No. 15 Scholtz were just beginning the third set at No. 1.
“I cannot say enough of Tassilo today,” Roberts said. “In the changeovers, we talked about this being Ole Miss and his senior season. We talked about how he wanted to finish this and just not having any regrets. I just pushed him to keep fighting and competing and he believed in himself and, next thing you know, he clinches. Just a great job by him.”
State will now hit the road for a pair of matches this weekend. MSU travels to Kentucky on Friday, March 27, for a 4 p.m. CT, showdown in Lexington. They will finish out the weekend with a Noon contest at No. 52 Tennessee on Sunday, March 29.
For more information on Mississippi State men's tennis and updates, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateMT.
No. 34 Mississippi State 4, No. 13 Ole Miss 1
March 25, 2015 – A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre – Starkville, Miss.
Doubles
1. No. 14 Julian Cash/Florian Lakat (MSU) def. Zvonimir Babic/Nik Scholtz (UM) 6-4
2. Mate Cutura/Tassilo Schmid (MSU) vs. No. 45 Gustav Hansson/Stefan Lindmark (UM) 6-6(susp.)
3. Juan Cruz Estevarena/Robin Haden (MSU) def. William Kallberg/Grey Hamilton (UM) 7-6(2)
Singles
1. No. 108 Lakat (MSU) vs. No. 15 Scholtz (UM) 7-6(7), 6-7(3), susp.
2. Estevarena (MSU) vs. No. 84 Lindmark (UM) 3-6, 6-4, 5-5, susp.
3. Cutura (MSU) def. Hansson (UM) 6-3, 6-4
4. No. 122 Schmid (MSU) vs. Kallberg (UM) 3-6, 7-6(3), 7-5
5. Rishab Agarwal (MSU) def. Ricardo Jorge (UM) 6-3, 6-1
6. Vinod Gowda (UM) def. Cash (MSU) 7-5, 6-4
Order of finish… Doubles (1,3)… Singles (3,5,6,4)
Players Mentioned
