Men's Tennis Topped by Cornell, 7-0

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State's men's tennis team battled in doubles, but fell, 7-0, to Cornell Sunday afternoon inside the Big Red's Reis Tennis Center in Ithaca. N.Y.

"Our guys played with great energy and player at a high level, just not high enough," said MSU men's tennis head coach Gene Orlando. "We are improving and our best tennis is ahead of us."

The Spartans saw themselves in battles up and down the line in doubles action with the Big Red. After freshamn Kazuki Matsuno and junior Josh Mukherjee fell to Evan Bynoe and Pietro Rimondini, 6-3, in the third flight, MSU fought until the end in flights one and two. A back and forth battle on court one with sophomore Anthony Pero and junior John Carlin ensued with Cornell's Eero Vasa and Daniel Soyfer. Soyfer and Vasa prevailed in a tiebreaker (7-6 (2)) to claim the doubles point for the Big Red. Shortly after, freshman duo Jarreau Campbell and Drew Keene fell in a tiebreaker to Alafia Ayeni and Lev Kazakov, 7-6 (5).

Cornell started out strong with first set wins on all six courts over the Spartans. Soyfer put the Big Red up 2-0 with a straight set (6-3, 6-0) win over Keene on court five. Cornell clinched the match with wins on courts two and three. Pero fell to Ayeni in the second flight, 6-3, 6-1, and Gates dropped a 6-3, 6-1 decision to Kazakov on court three. Mukherjee rallied in the second set against Soyfer, before falling 6-3, 7-5. In the top slot, Carlin took on Vasa. Vasa claimed the first set, 6-3, but Carlin rallied to force a tiebreaker in the second. Vasa came away on top in the tiebreaker, 7-6 (2), to give Cornell a 6-0 lead. Rimondini closed out the dual for Cornell with a hard-fought 6-4, 7-5 win over Matsuno on court six.

Up Next

The Spartans return home for a pair of duals with Western Michigan (Friday, Feb. 7) and Arizona State on Sunday, Feb. 9. Friday's dual will begin at 6 p.m. and Sunday's match is set for 12 p.m. inside the MSU Indoor Tennis Facility.

Cornell 7, Michigan State 0

Singles Results

1. Eero Vasa (COR) def. John Carlin (MSU) 6-3, 7-6 (7-2)

2. Alafia Ayeni (COR) def. Anthony Pero (MSU) 6-3, 6-3

3. Lev Kazakov (COR) def. Carson Gates (MSU) 6-3, 6-1

4. Evan Bynoe (COR) def. Josh Mukherjee (MSU) 6-3, 7-5

5. Daniel Soyfer (COR) def. Drew Keene (MSU) 6-3, 6-0

6. Pietro Rimondini (COR) def. Kazuki Matsuno (MSU) 6-4, 7-5

Doubles Results

1. Eero Vasa/Daniel Soyfer (COR) def. Anthony Pero/John Carlin (MSU) 7-6 (7-2)

2. Alafia Ayeni/Lev Kazakov (COR) def. Jarreau Campbell/Drew Keene (MSU) 7-6 (7-5)

3. Evan Bynoe/Pietro Rimondini (COR) def. Kazuki Matsuno/Josh Mukherjee (MSU) 6-3

Match Notes:

Michigan State 3-3

Cornell 2-0

Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (5,2,3,4,1,6)

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Team Stats

Players Mentioned

Jarreau Campbell

John Carlin

Carson Gates

Drew Keene

Kazuki Matsuno

Josh Mukherjee

Anthony Pero