STARKVILLE — Mississippi State has been a model of consistency under head coach Matt Roberts, and for the third straight year, the Bulldogs advanced out of an NCAA regional on their own home courts.
No. 12 seed MSU won a pair of 4-0 decisions in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, defeating New Orleans on Friday and Michigan State on Saturday. The Bulldogs have advanced to the round of 16 for the seventh time in the last nine tournaments.
“To be able to do it as many times as we’ve done it here, I’m very appreciative and lucky to have this job and be able to build these men and get those moments where we can keep playing postseason tennis,” Roberts said. “When you see them start doing things on their own and building that confidence in themselves, it’s the most rewarding thing.”
Against the Privateers, MSU (24-5) easily took the doubles point, with freshman Niccolo Baroni and junior Mario Martinez Serrano winning 6-2 at No. 2 and juniors Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez winning by the same score at No. 1. After a lightning delay, the match was moved indoors, but the Bulldogs quickly extended their lead with a 6-0, 6-2 win from Martinez Serrano at No. 6 singles and a 6-0, 6-1 victory by Sanchez Martinez at the top spot.
Baroni then provided the clinching point, winning 6-2, 6-2 at No. 3. Freshman Bryan Hernandez Cortes was one game away from a victory at No. 5 when Baroni’s match wrapped up.
“It’s never easy when you start a new tournament, first round against a pretty good team,” Baroni said. “We didn’t know this team, and they played really (well). So we had to stay committed the whole time. We did a pretty good job as a team, every one of us, taking care of our courts.”
Saturday’s match against the Spartans was delayed nearly four hours by lightning and rain before the Bulldogs again came out on top in doubles. Jovanovic and Sanchez Martinez started things off with a 6-4 win, and the other two matches each went to a tiebreak. Senior Dusan Milanovic and junior Michal Novansky fell 7-4 in their tiebreak, but Baroni and Martinez Serrano pulled theirs out, 8-6, to give Mississippi State the first point.
Hernandez Cortes earned the first singles win, 6-3, 6-4, at No. 5. Milanovic then won 6-3, 6-2 to put the Bulldogs on the brink of victory, and once again it was Baroni who clinched it, winning his match 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 at No. 3. Mississippi State finished the season 19-1 at home, with the only loss coming to North Carolina State in late January.
The Bulldogs will head on the road for their third-round match this coming Saturday against No. 5 seed Ohio State. The Buckeyes eliminated MSU in the same round last season, so the Bulldogs are familiar with the venue and several of Ohio State’s players.
“We just try to find the right guys who fit into our culture here in Starkville,” Roberts said. “It’s a small town, so you have to find the right guys who don’t want other things. They don’t want to go out and party a lot. We try to find guys who are really serious about tennis. When you can find those guys, it’s unbelievable what the reward is to see these guys become a close team, push each other and learn how to become better versions of themselves.”
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