Mississippi State
Tennessee
Cutura, Estevarena Cap No. 34 MSU?s 4-3 Comeback At No. 52 Tennessee
March 29, 2015 | Men's Tennis
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Another day, another comeback. The No. 34 Mississippi State Bulldogs (15-5, 6-2 SEC) were the captains of clutch on Sunday, coming back to defeat No. 52 Tennessee (11-9, 3-5 SEC) 4-3 in Knoxville.
The come-from-behind win was the second in as many matches for the Bulldogs. MSU had to fight from down 3-2 on Friday to defeat Kentucky, 4-3. State then turned around and fought back from a 3-1 deficit on Sunday to defeat the Volunteers for their third-straight win.
The win also snaps a three-match skid to UT for the Bulldogs, earning the first win against the Vols since a 4-2 victory in the 2012 SEC Championship in Starkville.
“This is another huge win for us and shows how much we're growing as this season goes along,” MSU coach Matt Roberts said. “The SEC is an extremely tough conference to win in, especially on the road. Our guys have come through in the clutch lately and delivered some big wins and I could not be more proud.”
After dropping the doubles point, MSU would equalize the match at 1-1 with a straight-sets win on court five from Rishab Agarwal. However, Kentucky would pick up two quick wins on courts one and four to put themselves within one of victory. After State earned a straight-sets win from Julian Cash on six, it would rally after being forced to the third in the remaining matches to clinch. Mate Cutura evened the match 3-all before Juan Cruz Estevarena came back from an early third-set break to break UT's Hunter Reese to seal the win.
UT earned its early lead by taking the doubles matches on courts two and three. MSU's Cutura and Tassilo Schmid fell in a 6-4 decision to the Vols' Andrew Dromsky and Igor Smelyanski. The clincher came on court three, as UT's Jack Schipanski and Luis Valero snapped a four-match winning streak for MSU's Estevarena and Robin Haden, 6-3.
Play on court one was suspended at the clinch, with UT's No. 2 team of Mikelis Libietis and Hunter Reese holding to a slim 5-4 lead against MSU's No. 14 duo of Cash and Florian Lakat.
MSU was not fazed however, as Agarwal fired off a quick 6-1, 6-2 win against Smelyanski on court five to even things at 1-1. The win puts the sophomore at 13-3 this spring and 19-6 overall, both which lead the team. He also has reeled off six-straight victories.
The Bulldogs would capture three other first sets in addition to Agarwal's, giving them the start they needed. That would not mean that Tennessee would go away quietly as it took two straight-set victories and split sets on two other courts.
Thanks to a 7-6(4), 6-0 win from No. 16 Libietis against MSU's No. 108 Lakat on one and a 6-4, 6-3 defeat of No. 122 Schmid from UT's Valero, the Volunteers pushed back into the lead at 3-1. With the lead and two matches pushed to the third, Tennessee seemed to be in control on its home court.
Enter Cutura and Estevarena, who would spark the Bulldogs' rally. Cutura would fight off a 3-1 and a break deficit to start the third set, but found himself in trouble in his final service game. Facing two match points, Cutura used big serves and clutch forehands to push his contest into a tiebreaker, where he would finalize a 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(4) win at the No. 3 position against No. 119 Schipanski. Cutura now has won six-straight matches and remains perfect in SEC play at 6-0.
All eyes would then turn to court two, where Estevarena also fought back from an early break in the third. Down 6-5, UT's Reese would look to hold and force a tiebreaker, but Estevarena had other plans. With Reese one point away from holding, Estevarena would push the game to deuce. Reese would then push a cross-court forehand wide, sealing a 7-6(4), 2-6, 7-5 win for Estevarena.
“I cannot say enough about how tough our guys are, especially Mate and Juan Cruz,” Roberts said. “With all the pressure on them, they answered the call and sealed our win. This is a great win that gives us more momentum heading into a home match against Georgia.”
That home contest versus No. 5 UGA will take place on Friday, April 3 at 5 p.m., at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. MSU will close out the weekend at home with a Sunday, April 5 showdown against No. 42 South Carolina at 1 p.m.
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. 52 Tennessee 3
March 29, 2015 – Barksdale Stadium – Knoxville, Tenn.
Doubles
1. No. 2 Mikelis Libeitis/Hunter Reese (UT) vs. No. 14 Julian Cash/Florian Lakat (MSU) 5-4(susp.)
2. Andrew Dromsky/Igor Smelyanski (UT) def. Mate Cutura/Tassilo Schmid (MSU) 6-4
3. Jack Schipanski/Luis Valero (UT) def. Juan Cruz Estevarena/Robin Haden (MSU) 6-3
Singles
1. No. 16 Libietis (UT) def. No. 108 Lakat (MSU) 7-6(4), 6-0
2. Estevarena (MSU) def. Reese (UT) 7-6(4), 2-6, 7-5
3. Cutura (MSU) def. No. 119 Schipanski (UT) 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(4)
4. Valero (UT) def. No. 122 Schmid (MSU) 6-4, 6-3
5. Rishab Agarwal (MSU) def. Smelyanski (UT) 6-1, 6-2
6. Cash (MSU) def. Jess Jones (UT) 7-5, 7-5
Order of finish… Doubles (2,3)… Singles (5,1,4,6,3,2)
Players Mentioned
