Men's Tennis Falls to Arizona State, 7-0

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State men's tennis dropped a 7-0 decision to Arizona State Sunday afternoon at the MSU Indoor Tennis Facility.

"I thought we prepared well, but give a lot of credit to Arizona State, they have a good quaility team," said MSU men's tennis head coach Gene Orlando. "We battled hard and they just came away with some good shots at the end."

Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren was in attendance for the match, making the trek to East Lansing and the MSU Indoor Facility as part of his plan of watching all 350 of the Big Ten's varsity programs in his first year as commissioner.

"It was pretty exciting and great that he's committed to student-athlete wellness," said Orlando. "Great that he was here and had a moment to speak to the crowd where the players could hear it and great that we could be a part of his tour."

Thank you to @bigten commissioner @KevinFWarren for coming out to today's match at the MSU Indoor Facility!

We enjoyed having you! #GoGreen 🎾 pic.twitter.com/maSwRhV4zA
— Michigan State Men's Tennis (@MSU_Tennis) February 9, 2020

Arizona State collected wins on courts one and three in doubles action to take the doubles point. Junior John Carlin and sophomore Anthony Pero dropped a 6-1 decision to No. 18 Tim Ruehl and Andrea Bolla in the top slot. Freshman Kazuki Matsuno and junior Josh Mukherjee hung around early with William Kirkman and Tom LeBlanc on court three. Tied at three, the Sun Devil duo won the final three games to take the set, 6-3, and clinch the doubles point over the Spartans. Freshman duo Jarreau Campbell and Drew Keene trailed 5-3 on court two to Christian Lerby and George Stoupe for going unfinished.

The Spartans fell behind early in singles action, dropping the first set on all six courts. The Sun Devils extended their lead to 2-0 after a straight-set win by No. 106-ranked Reuhl, 6-1, 6-2, over Pero in the the second slot. Carlin took on Bolla in the top slot for the Spartans. A back and forth first set went to Bolla, 6-4, before he took the second set, 6-2, to give ASU a commanding 3-0 lead. After falling in the first set (6-0), sophomore Carson Gates fought back in the second set against Lerby on court three. After forcing a tiebreaker, Gates fell (7-0), fiving Lerby the win and Arizona State the win, 4-0.

On court five, Matsuno faced off against Stoupe for the Sun Devils. Stouple held off Matsuno in the first set, 6-4, and claimed the second set, 6-3, for the straight set win. Mukherjee fell in hard-fought battle with LeBlanc in the fourt slot. After falling 6-3 in the first set, Mukherjee rallied back to force a tiebreaker in the second. The junior took an early lead in the breaker, before LeBlanc reeled off three-straight points for the win. Camphell and Williams Kirkman were the last match on for the day on court six. Kirkman claimed the first set over Campbell, 6-2, before the freshman from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, came back to take the second set, 6-2. In a winner take all third set, Kirkman held off a late rally by Campbell to take the third set (7-6 [5]), giving Arizona State the 7-0 win over the Spartans.

Up Next

The Spartans take next week off before traveling to Des Moines, Iowa, to take on Drake and New Mexico. MSU faces Drake on Friday, Feb. 21 at 6 p.m. and New Mexico on Sunday, Feb. 23 at 11 a.m.

Arizona State 7, Michigan State 0

Doubles Results

1. No. 18 Tim Ruehl/Andrea Bolla (ASU) def. John Carlin/Anthony Pero (MSU), 6-1

2. Christian Lerby/George Stoupe (ASU) vs. Jarreau Campbell/Drew Keene (MSU), 5-3, uf

3. William Kirkman/Tom LeBlanc (ASU) def. Kazuki Matsuno/Josh Mukherjee (MSU), 6-3

Singles Results

1. Andrea Bolla (ASU) def. John Carlin (MSU), 6-4, 6-2

2. No. 106 Tim Ruehl (ASU) def. Anthony Pero (MSU), 6-1, 6-2

3. Christian Lerby (ASU) def. Carson Gates (MSU), 6-0, 7-6 (0)

4. Tom LeBlanc (ASU) def. Josh Mukherjee (MSU), 6-3, 7-6 (5)

5. George Stoupe (ASU) def. Kazuki Matsuno (MSU), 6-4 ,6-3

6. William Kirkman (ASU) def. Jarreau Campbell (MSU), 6-2, 2-6, 7-6 (5)

Match Notes:

Arizona State- 3-4

Michigan State- 4-4

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

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Team Stats

Players Mentioned

Jarreau Campbell

John Carlin

Carson Gates

Drew Keene

Kazuki Matsuno

Josh Mukherjee

Anthony Pero