Mississippi State
Vanderbilt
No. 28 MSU Falls 4-1 To No. 5 Vandy; Hosts No. 23 Kentucky Saturday
April 01, 2016 | Women's Tennis
Starkville, Miss. – The 28th-ranked Mississippi State women's tennis team (12-7, 3-6 Southeastern Conference) fell 4-1 to No. 5 and defending national champion Vanderbilt (13-4, 6-2 SEC) on Friday at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre in a battle that was much closer than the final score indicated.
Vandy started the day by claiming the doubles point. MSU's tandem of No. 61 Georgiana Patrasc and Anastasia Rentouli fell 6-3 on court three to the Commodore duo of Fernanda Contreras and Georgina Sellyn. VU clinched the doubles point at the No. 1 position, as the 58th-ranked pair of Courtney Colton and Astra Sharma downed State's duo of Madison Harrison and Kristina Vozniak 6-4. The remaining match between MSU's Jasmine Lee and Louise Ronaldson and Vandy's Frances Altick and Sydney Campbell was suspended tied at 5-5.
In singles, the Bulldogs tried to fight back, taking three of the six first sets but it was not enough in the end.
The Commodores' 25th-ranked Campbell upset State's 13th-ranked Lee 6-3, 6-1 at the top spot for a 2-0 lead. MSU's highlight of the day came as the 100th-ranked rookie Rentouli ousted Vandy's senior Colton in straight sets 6-2, 6-4 at No. 4 to make the score 2-1. Vandy would respond with a win on court three for a 3-1 advantage, as VU's 21st-ranked Sharma edged MSU's Harrison 6-4, 6-3.
The final three matches were all very closely matched and State was in position to possibly claim all three for a comeback win, but Vandy got the victory it needed in the tightest match of the day, as Sellyn completed a 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(1) triumph over MSU's Vozniak at the No. 5 position to make the final score 4-1.
The remaining courts were suspended. On court two, State's No. 71 Patrasc had a one-set lead over VU's 17th-ranked Altick 7-6(6), 4-5. At No. 6, Vanderbilt's Contreras held a 4-6, 6-2, 4-2 lead over MSU's Jennifer Brown.
“We got to test ourselves against the defending national champions and the fifth-ranked team in the country,” head coach Daryl Greenan said. “We came up short and I guess it's kind of the same thing that we've been experiencing. We are battling well but have come up short against some of the best teams in the country. We have a young team here and I think we are making progress.”
MSU continues its three-match homestand against No. 23 Kentucky on Saturday, April 2, at 1 p.m. CT. The Wildcats boast two ranked singles players in No. 49 Aldila Sutjiadi and No. 76 Justina Mikulskyte. On the doubles side, UK has the nation's third-ranked pair of Mami Adachi and Sutjiadi as well as No. 51 Morgan Chumney and Akvile Parazinskaite.
For more information on Mississippi State women's tennis and updates, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateWT.
No. 5 Vanderbilt 4, No. 28 Mississippi State 1
April 1, 2016 – A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre – Starkville, Miss.
Doubles
Order of match finish…3,1
1. No. 58 Courtney Colton/Astra Sharma (VU) def. Madison Harrison/Kristina Vozniak (MSU) 6-4
2. Jasmine Lee/Louise Ronaldson (MSU) vs. Frances Altick/Sydney Campbell (VU) 5-5 (susp.)
3. Fernanda Contreras/Georgina Sellyn (VU) def. No. 61 Georgiana Patrasc/Anastasia Rentouli (MSU) 6-3
Singles
Order of match finish…1,4,3,5
1. No. 25 Sydney Campbell (VU) def. No. 13 Jasmine Lee (MSU) 6-3, 6-1
2. No. 71 Georgiana Patrasc (MSU) vs. No. 17 Frances Altick (VU) 7-6(6), 4-5 (susp.)
3. No. 21 Astra Sharma (VU) def. Madison Harrison (MSU) 6-4, 6-3
4. No. 100 Anastasia Rentouli (MSU) def. Courtney Colton (VU) 6-2, 6-4
5. Georgina Sellyn (VU) def. Kristina Vozniak (MSU) 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(1)
6. Fernanda Contreras (VU) vs. Jennifer Brown (MSU) 4-6, 6-2, 4-2 (susp.)
