Saturday, February 20
East Lansing, MI
12 P.M.
Michigan State University
4
vs
3
Minnesota
Spartans Rally to Defeat Minnesota in Big Ten Opener, 4-3
2/20/2021 5:30:00 PM | Men's Tennis
EAST LANSING, Mich. – Redshirt sophomore Nick Williams won a dual-clinching third-set tiebreaker at No. 2 singles as the Michigan State men's tennis team rallied to defeat Minnesota, 4-3, in the Big Ten opener on Saturday afternoon at the MSU Indoor Tennis Facility.
In a back-and-forth dual all day between the Spartans and the Gophers, the match was all tied at 3 and came down to the decisive point at No. 2 singles. Williams lost the first set to Dylan Heap, 6-4, but rallied to take the second set, 6-3. Down 4-1 in the third set, Williams stormed back to force a tiebreaker, then rolled to a 7-1 triumph to seal the dual for MSU.
"It was a long time coming – our guys have been working extremely hard through this pandemic," said MSU men's tennis head coach Gene Orlando. "We have a great group of young men and they work hard for each other. We knew that it would be a tough match and the guys were really gutsy today. (Luke) Baylis came back with some match points against him, and Nick Williams was down 4-1 in the third and found ways to get it done. It was a great win for the Spartans.
"I'm really happy for Nick. He's had a tough road with injuries and sitting out last year and not being able to play, so to have a big win like this is pretty sweet.
"Last week really helped us a ton (playing at No. 8 Ohio State); we learned a lot. It really helped us realize we need to take care of our serve, and you have to work on your returns, and the opportunity to play last week showed that. We really put an emphasis on it."
The Spartans took a 1-0 lead by claiming the doubles point over the Gophers. Drew Keene and Reed Crocker made quick work of Jackson Allen and Sebastian Vile on court three, 6-3, but Minnesota's Siim Troost and Vlad Lobak topped Williams and Kazuki Matsuno at No. 1, 6-4. On the second court, Graydon Lair and Jarreau Campbell clinched the point with a 7-1 tiebreaker win over Daniel Martin and Bodin Zarkovic.
"Tuesday is tiebreak Tuesday (at practice)," said Orlando. "We knew there were going to be a lot of tiebreakers. If you want to get some big wins, it's not going to be easy. When we were in that moment, we knew that we have played a ton of tiebreakers."
The Gophers won the first two matches in singles, at No. 5 and No. 1, to go up, 2-1, but junior Carson Gates tied the dual at 2-2 with his 6-3, 6-3 victory over Troost on court three. The Spartans then took a 3-2 advantage as freshman Luke Baylis edged Bodin Zarkovic at No. 6 singles, 6-0, 2-6, 7-5.
Junior Anthony Pero lost a tough match at No. 4 singles, falling in two tiebreakers, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (8-6), setting the stage for the final point on court two between Williams and Heap.
The Spartans (1-2, 1-0 Big Ten) will take on Wisconsin (0-2, 0-1) Sunday at noon in the MSU Indoor Tennis Facility; fans will not be allowed in attendance due to COVID-19 restrictions. Live stats and video will be available on msuspartans.com.
In a back-and-forth dual all day between the Spartans and the Gophers, the match was all tied at 3 and came down to the decisive point at No. 2 singles. Williams lost the first set to Dylan Heap, 6-4, but rallied to take the second set, 6-3. Down 4-1 in the third set, Williams stormed back to force a tiebreaker, then rolled to a 7-1 triumph to seal the dual for MSU.
"It was a long time coming – our guys have been working extremely hard through this pandemic," said MSU men's tennis head coach Gene Orlando. "We have a great group of young men and they work hard for each other. We knew that it would be a tough match and the guys were really gutsy today. (Luke) Baylis came back with some match points against him, and Nick Williams was down 4-1 in the third and found ways to get it done. It was a great win for the Spartans.
"I'm really happy for Nick. He's had a tough road with injuries and sitting out last year and not being able to play, so to have a big win like this is pretty sweet.
BIG 4-3 win for the Spartans over Minnesota! ✅📈 #SpartanTough #V4MSU pic.twitter.com/qKPp4HZ8LR
— Michigan State Men's Tennis (@MSU_Tennis) February 20, 2021
"Last week really helped us a ton (playing at No. 8 Ohio State); we learned a lot. It really helped us realize we need to take care of our serve, and you have to work on your returns, and the opportunity to play last week showed that. We really put an emphasis on it."
The Spartans took a 1-0 lead by claiming the doubles point over the Gophers. Drew Keene and Reed Crocker made quick work of Jackson Allen and Sebastian Vile on court three, 6-3, but Minnesota's Siim Troost and Vlad Lobak topped Williams and Kazuki Matsuno at No. 1, 6-4. On the second court, Graydon Lair and Jarreau Campbell clinched the point with a 7-1 tiebreaker win over Daniel Martin and Bodin Zarkovic.
"Tuesday is tiebreak Tuesday (at practice)," said Orlando. "We knew there were going to be a lot of tiebreakers. If you want to get some big wins, it's not going to be easy. When we were in that moment, we knew that we have played a ton of tiebreakers."
The Gophers won the first two matches in singles, at No. 5 and No. 1, to go up, 2-1, but junior Carson Gates tied the dual at 2-2 with his 6-3, 6-3 victory over Troost on court three. The Spartans then took a 3-2 advantage as freshman Luke Baylis edged Bodin Zarkovic at No. 6 singles, 6-0, 2-6, 7-5.
Junior Anthony Pero lost a tough match at No. 4 singles, falling in two tiebreakers, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (8-6), setting the stage for the final point on court two between Williams and Heap.
The Spartans (1-2, 1-0 Big Ten) will take on Wisconsin (0-2, 0-1) Sunday at noon in the MSU Indoor Tennis Facility; fans will not be allowed in attendance due to COVID-19 restrictions. Live stats and video will be available on msuspartans.com.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
3,1,2
#1 Singles Match
12
Jackson Allen / 0 [MINN]
66
22
#2 Singles Match
123
Dylan Heap / 0 [MINN]
636
467
#3 Singles Match
12
Siim Troost / 0 [MINN]
33
66
#4 Singles Match
12
Vlad Lobak / 0 [MINN]
77
66
#5 Singles Match
12
Sebastian Vile / 0 [MINN]
66
42
#6 Singles Match
123
Bodin Zarkovic / 0 [MINN]
065
627
Order of Finish:
5,1,3,6,4,2
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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