Sunday, April 23
East Lansing, Mich.
Noon
Michigan State University
1
vs
6
Northwestern
Photo by: Kelly Branigan
Men's Tennis Falls to Northwestern
4/23/2023 5:11:00 PM | Men's Tennis
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State men's tennis fell to No. 26 Northwestern, 6-1, in its regular-season finale Sunday afternoon at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center.
MSU dropped to 10-13 (3-6 B1G), while Northwestern moved to 19-8 (7-2 B1G).
Sunday's match marked the final career home match for Spartan seniors Kazuki Matsuno and Anthony Pero, who were recognized during the match.
Northwestern picked up the doubles point with wins on courts one and two. Freshman Ozan Baris and Pero fell in a tightly-contested 6-4 match to 61st-ranked Steven Forman and Simen Bratholm, while junior Reed Crocker and Matsuno, also playing a close match against a ranked team, fell 6-4 to 80th-ranked Gleb Blekher and Ivan Yatsuk. Playing at No. 3 doubles, sophomore Max Sheldon and junior Graydon Lair won their fifth-straight match together, defeating Trice Pickens and Natan Spear, 6-4.
Sheldon earned the Spartans' lone point of the afternoon with a win at No. 2 singles over Northwestern's Yatsuk. In a back-and-forth match, Sheldon battled back from trailing in the first set to secure a a 7-5 first-set win before dropping his second set 7-6(5). After the Wildcats clinched the match, the match moved to a super tiebreak final set, where Sheldon won 10-7 to take the victory.
Pero also battled in a close match on court four, falling to Pickens 7-6(6), 7-5.
Sunday marked the second-straight match that the Spartans have faced two ranked doubles teams. Baris also faced a ranked opponent at No. 1 singles for the second-straight match, falling 6-4, 6-4 to Northwestern's 60th-ranked Forman.
The Spartans have earned the No. 7 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and will face 10th-seeded Purdue in the first round of the tournament on Thursday, April 27 at 2 p.m. in Bloomington, Indiana at Indiana's IU Tennis Center. The winner of Thursday's match will face No. 2 seed Michigan on Friday, April 28 at 1:30 p.m. in the quarterfinals. Streaming will be available on B1G+.
MSU earned a 5-2 road win over the Boilermakers this season on April 14.
MSU dropped to 10-13 (3-6 B1G), while Northwestern moved to 19-8 (7-2 B1G).
Sunday's match marked the final career home match for Spartan seniors Kazuki Matsuno and Anthony Pero, who were recognized during the match.
Northwestern picked up the doubles point with wins on courts one and two. Freshman Ozan Baris and Pero fell in a tightly-contested 6-4 match to 61st-ranked Steven Forman and Simen Bratholm, while junior Reed Crocker and Matsuno, also playing a close match against a ranked team, fell 6-4 to 80th-ranked Gleb Blekher and Ivan Yatsuk. Playing at No. 3 doubles, sophomore Max Sheldon and junior Graydon Lair won their fifth-straight match together, defeating Trice Pickens and Natan Spear, 6-4.
Sheldon earned the Spartans' lone point of the afternoon with a win at No. 2 singles over Northwestern's Yatsuk. In a back-and-forth match, Sheldon battled back from trailing in the first set to secure a a 7-5 first-set win before dropping his second set 7-6(5). After the Wildcats clinched the match, the match moved to a super tiebreak final set, where Sheldon won 10-7 to take the victory.
Pero also battled in a close match on court four, falling to Pickens 7-6(6), 7-5.
Sunday marked the second-straight match that the Spartans have faced two ranked doubles teams. Baris also faced a ranked opponent at No. 1 singles for the second-straight match, falling 6-4, 6-4 to Northwestern's 60th-ranked Forman.
The Spartans have earned the No. 7 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and will face 10th-seeded Purdue in the first round of the tournament on Thursday, April 27 at 2 p.m. in Bloomington, Indiana at Indiana's IU Tennis Center. The winner of Thursday's match will face No. 2 seed Michigan on Friday, April 28 at 1:30 p.m. in the quarterfinals. Streaming will be available on B1G+.
MSU earned a 5-2 road win over the Boilermakers this season on April 14.
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
1,3,2
#1 Singles Match
12
Steven Forman / 0 (60/-) [NU]
66
44
#2 Singles Match
123
Ivan Yatsuk / 0 [NU]
570
761
#3 Singles Match
12
Simen Bratholm / 0 [NU]
76
53
#4 Singles Match
12
Trice Pickens / 0 [NU]
77
65
#5 Singles Match
12
Presley Thieneman / 0 [NU]
66
42
#6 Singles Match
12
Gleb Blekher / 0 [NU]
66
13
Order of Finish:
5,6,3,1,2,4
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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