Florida Drops Close Match to Mississippi State
A third-set tiebreaker decided the most thrilling and heartbreaking match of the Gators’ 2024 season, as Florida takes their first loss of the year in Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida Gators Men’s Tennis took their first loss at home of the 2024 dual season at the hands of the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Sunday. The Gators now hold a 9-9 overall record, and a 3-5 record conference play.
How it Happened
Florida began Sunday’s match with another doubles point win, their sixth win of the coveted first point in eight SEC matches. Nate Bonetto/Aidan Kim worked a quick 6-2 set on court one to give Florida an early edge. The two remaining courts each finished with 7-5 scores, and moments after Mississippi state claimed court three, Florida’s Jeremy Jin/Henry Jefferson tandem broke the Bulldog serve to win court two, and net a crucial first point for the Orange and Blue.
Momentum in singles play quickly went to Mississippi State, as they took three straight-set victories in a row on courts five, two, and one. All eyes turned to the final three courts as Mississippi State held a commanding 3-1 lead.
Florida’s Tanapatt Nirundorn won the first set on court four, going blow-for-blow with MSU’s Dusan Milanovic and coming out on top, 7-5. In his second set, Nirundorn at one point trailed 4-1 before battling to a 6-5 score on a huge break point before finishing off his opponent with well-placed serves to take the match 7-5, 7-5.
Following Nirundorn’s efforts, freshman Kevin Edengren put together the most impressive battle of his young collegiate career. Edengren won his first set, 6-3, before quickly losing control of his second set and heading to a third. With the dual match on the line, the third set of court six appeared evenly matched, but Edengren took a 5-4 lead with serve, and sealed the point for Florida with an impressive break point to win the third set 6-4
With the dual tied at 3-3, focus returned to court three where Bonetto led in the third set 5-4. Neither Bonetto nor the Bulldogs’ Carles Hernandez could manage a break point, leading to a final tiebreaker to decide both court three and the dual match. Bonetto fell to a late push by Hernandez, and dropped the tiebreaker 7-6 (7-2).
Next Up
The Gators now head Athens, Ga., set for a battle with the rival No. 40 Georgia Bulldogs on Sunday.
From Head Coach Adam Steinberg
On the fight he saw from his team…
“We were right there against a very good team. They’ve been through a lot of tough matches as we have at this point in the season. That was our first time in that situation, against older guys. I think we’re going to grow a lot from those moments. It’s important that we play those types of matches, because as we go along and we get better and better, there are going to be more of them. I feel for Nate [Bonetto], he fought hard and did everything he could. It’s always tough when it ends on your match.”
Results
Singles competition
1. #118 Nemanja Malesevic (MS) def. #66 Jeremy Jin (UF) 7-5, 6-3
2. #39 Petar Jovanovic (MS) def. Aidan Kim (UF) 6-2, 6-2
3. Carles Hernandez (MS) def. Nate Bonetto (UF) 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7-2)
4. Tanapatt Nirundorn (UF) def. Dusan Milanovic (MS) 7-5, 7-5
5. B. Sanchez Martinez (MS) def. Henry Jefferson (UF) 6-3, 6-2
6. Kevin Edengren (UF) def. R. Ferrer Guimaraes (MS) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. #67 Nate Bonetto/Aidan Kim (UF) def. #37 Petar Jovanovic/B. Sanchez Martinez (MS) 6-2
2. Jeremy Jin/Henry Jefferson (UF) def. Carles Hernandez/Dusan Milanovic (MS) 7-5
3. Nemanja Malesevic/Michal Novansky (MS) def. Kevin Edengren/Tanapatt Nirundorn (UF) 7-5
Match Notes:
Mississippi State 13-5; National ranking #19
Florida 9-9; National ranking #33
Order of Finish: Doubles (1, 3, 2) Singles (5, 2, 1, 4, 6, 3)
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