Crimson Tide Improves to 12-2 Overall and 3-1 in SEC Play
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The 23rd-ranked Alabama men’s tennis team (12-2, 3-1 SEC) got back on track Sunday, picking up a 6-1 victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs (5-5, 1-3 SEC). The Crimson Tide swept all three doubles matches, and senior Dan Buikema came through with the clinching singles win for Alabama. With the win, the Tide evens its conference home record to 1-1 this season.
“This was a solid win against a very good Mississippi State team,” said head coach Billy Pate. “They had a lot of momentum after their upset over Auburn on Friday. I am proud of the way our guys rebounded after an emotional loss to Ole Miss. I think the difference for us right now is we are playing the big points well. We have a veteran group of guys that has been stepping up at exactly the right time.”
Alabama got off to a strong start in doubles, earning early breaks in two of the three matches. The 27th-ranked pair of junior Saketh Myneni and senior Billy Mertz was first off the court for the Tide, breaking serve on their first and last return games to defeat Mississippi State’s freshman pair of Artem Ilyushin and Louis Cant 8-4 at the No. 2 position. The doubles point was clinched moments later when Alabama senior duo Mathieu Thibaudeau and Dan Buikema collected an 8-6 victory in the No. 1 spot over sophomore Tanner Stump and junior Christopher Doerr. The Tide seniors took an early break lead, but the Bulldog tandem broke back to tighten up the match. Thibaudeau and Buikema would fight back to break serve again, eventually serving out the win. Alabama finished off the sweep of the doubles point thanks to a win by senior Andrew Felsenthal and freshman Ricky Doverspike, as they took down senior Ryan Farlow and sophomore Antonio Lastre 8-4 at the No. 3 position.
Singles action was tight, with four matches once again going three sets. The only battle of ranked players took place on court one, with Myneni backing up his ranking of No. 66 with an easy 6-2, 6-2 win over No. 118 Farlow. Myneni raced out to a 5-0 lead in the first set, but struggled to close it out. After dropping serve once, Myneni eventually held and jumped to a 2-0 lead in the second. Farlow would again fight back, evening the set at 2-2, but Myneni would weather the storm to take the final four games of the match. Next off the court for Alabama was freshman Michael Thompson, who cruised to a 6-3, 6-1 defeat of Lastre at the No. 3 spot. Thompson dropped serve in his opening service game of the second set after securing the first, but that would be the last game he surrendered on his way to the victory. Buikema delivered the clinching win for the Tide this time, taking a hard fought 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5) match over Doerr in the No. 5 position. Doerr served for the opening set at 6-5, but could not take advantage of the opportunity. Buikema took the opening set and earned a break in the second, but could not capitalize on the opportunity to serve for the match at 5-4. The tiebreak appeared to be well in hand for Buikema, who got out to a 5-1 lead. However, Doerr would get the tiebreak back on serve at 5-6. Buikema made Doerr hit a tough volley on match point, which sat up for an easy passing shot and the win for Buikema.
Another senior, Michael Jung, was next to pick up a victory for Alabama. Jung looked to be in full control of the first set at the No. 6 spot with a 5-2 lead, but failed to win another game in the set as Stump claimed the opening set 7-5. Jung would quickly bounce back, taking the second set 6-0 to force a third. The final set stayed on serve until Stump served at 4-5, when Jung fought to break serve and win the match 5-7, 6-0, 6-4. Thibaudeau was next to finish off a match filled with momentum swings. He jumped out to a 4-1 lead over Ilyushin in the first set in the No. 2 position. The lead would not hold, and Ilyushin rallied to take the opening set 7-5. Thibaudeau would hang in the second set despite the disappointing first set result, eventually taking it 7-5 and forcing a decisive third. Thibaudeau kept momentum in his corner, breaking serve early in the third set and winning the match 5-7, 7-5, 6-3. The final match of the day was once again a three set match, and would turn out to be the only victory of the day for the Bulldogs. Mertz also took an early 4-1 lead on Cant, but could not manage to hold the advantage. The first set eventually went into a tiebreak, with Cant taking it seven points to five. Mertz rebounded in the second set after falling behind 3-0, winning six games in a row to take the set 6-3. The third set would go down to the wire on court four, with Cant needing two opportunities to serve out the match. The first came at 5-4, but Mertz would find a way to break. However, Cant broke right back, taking a 6-5 advantage in the final set. This time, Cant would hold serve, taking the match 7-6 (5), 3-6, 7-5.
Next up, the Tide heads down to Montgomery, Ala. to compete in the Blue Gray Classic, which begins Thursday, March 19.
“We have got to rest up and get recharged for the Blue Gray,” added Pate. “We could potentially play four matches in four days. There is a lot of good competition in this year’s field.”
RESULTS
Doubles
1. Thibaudeau/Buikema (UA) def. Stump/Doerr (MSU) 8-6
2. No 27 Myneni/Mertz (UA) def. Ilyushin/Cant (MSU) 8-4
3. Felsenthal/Doverspike (UA) def. Farlow/Lastre (MSU) 8-4
Order of Finish: 2,1,3
Singles
1. No. 66 Saketh Myneni (UA) def. No. 188 Ryan Farlow (MSU) 6-2, 6-2
2. No. 114 Mathieu Thibaudeau (UA) def. Artem Ilyushin (MSU) 5-7, 7-5, 6-3
3. Michael Thompson (UA) def. Antonio Lastre (MSU) 6-3, 6-1
4. Louis Cant (MSU) def. Billy Mertz (UA) 7-6 (5), 3-6, 7-5
5. Dan Buikema (UA) def. Christopher Doerr (MSU) 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5)
6. Michael Jung (UA) def. Tanner Stump (MSU) 5-7, 6-0, 6-4
Order of Finish: 1,3,5*,6,2,4
