EAST LANSING- No. 16 Michigan State men’s tennis begins its weekend road trip by traveling to Knoxville, TN to face off against No. 19 Tennessee (4-2) on Friday evening.
The Spartans were handed their first loss of the early season by the reigning national champions No. 2 TCU on Sunday, 4-1. With its only point coming from freshman Matthew Forbes in a 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 victory.
Even with a lopsided final score, MSU remained competitive throughout the dual.
The doubles point came down to the final match, which went into a tiebreaker before junior Ozan Baris and redshirt sophomore Aristotelis Thanos fell 6-7 (4-7). Forbes attempted to spark an MSU comeback with his win, but Thanos would lose his three-set battle, 4-6, 6-4, 3-6.
Baris, Thanos, and senior Max Sheldon will all be looking to bounce back from their first singles losses of the spring season.
Tennessee finds itself in a similar situation headed into this matchup, coming off a 4-1 loss to the then No. 25 Michigan Wolverines on Sunday.
The Volunteers got its single point from senior Shunsuke Mitsui in a dominating 7-5, 6-0 victory. He will be the biggest threat to a Michigan State victory as he is a perfect 5-0 to start the season.
Like MSU, most of Tennessee’s key contributors will be looking to rebound from a loss in their last match. Unfortunately, one team will have to walk away with another loss.
Michigan State and Tennessee will clash on Friday at 5 p.m. inside the Goodfriend Tennis Center in Knoxville, TN.