Mississippi State Dominant in First SEC Road Win of the Season

AUBURN, Ala. - No. 5 Mississippi State men's tennis earned a 5-2 road victory over No. 18 Auburn on Saturday at the Yarbrough Tennis Center, extending their winning streak to 13 over the Tigers. The Bulldogs improved to 12-2 overall and 2-1 in SEC play with the ranked win.

Mississippi State set the tone early in doubles action. Bryan Hernandez Cortes and Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes won quickly with a 6-2 victory on court three followed by the No. 4 tandem of Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez defeating No. 20 Billy Blaydes and Freddy Blaydes, 6-2 to clinch the doubles point and give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead.

In singles, No. 43 Mario Martinez Serrano delivered a dominant 6-1, 6-3 win, while No. 10 Jovanovic earned a ranked victory over No. 86 Billy Blaydes, 6-2, 6-3. Raphael Vaksmann clinched the match for State with a 6-3, 7-6(5) win over Freddy Blaydes, sealing another statement road performance for the Bulldogs.

After clinching, the bulldogs added another point via Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes after he battled back to defeat No. 84 Manel Lazaro in three sets, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.No. 47 Benito Sanchez Martinez and No 55 Bryan Hernandez Cortes dropped their matches in three sets.

Records

No. 5 Mississippi State (11-2, 2-1 SEC)

No. 18 Auburn (10-2, 2-1 SEC)

Match Notes

• Mississippi State defeated Auburn twice this season for the first time since 2013.

• Mississippi State has now won three consecutive doubles points, the most consecutive all season.

• Both Petar Jovanovic and Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes secured ranked singles wins.

• Mario Martinez Serrano continued his singles domination, winning his fifth match in a row.

Up Next

No. 5 Mississippi State returns home to face Tennessee at 3 p.m. CT on March 6th at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre.

Match Results

Doubles

1. No. 4 Jovanovic / Sanchez Martinez (MSU) def. No. 20 B. Blaydes / F. Blaydes (AUB) – 6-2*

2. Heng / Phillips (AUB) vs. No. 47 Martinez Serrano / Novansky (MSU) – 3-4, unfinished

3. Hernandez Cortes / Ferrer Guimaraes (MSU) def. Kennedy / No. 56 Nasridinov (AUB) – 6-2

Mississippi State won the Doubles Point

Order of Finish: 3, 1*

Singles

1. No. 56 Hamza Nasridinov (AUB) def. No. 47 Benito Sanchez Martinez (MSU) – 6-2, 5-7, 6-3

2. No. 10 Petar Jovanovic (MSU) def. No. 86 Billy Blaydes (AUB) – 6-2, 6-3

3. No. 43 Mario Martinez Serrano (MSU) def. Nicholas Heng (AUB) – 6-1, 6-3

4. Raphael Vaksmann (MSU) def. Freddy Blaydes (AUB) – 6-3, 7-6(5)*

5. Alan Bojarski (AUB) def. No. 55 Bryan Hernandez Cortes (MSU) – 3-6, 6-0, 7-5

6. Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes (MSU) def. No. 84 Manel Lazaro (AUB) – 1-6, 6-3, 6-2

Order of Finish: 3, 2, 4*, 6, 5, 1

*Clincher

For more Information on the Bulldog women's tennis program, visit Hailstate.com or search for "HailstateMT" on X, Instagram and Facebook.

– HailState.com –

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