Men's Tennis Defeats Virginia Tech and Eastern Illinois in Season Opener

Friday, January 14

East Lansing, MI

4 PM

Michigan State University

Virginia Tech

Men's Tennis Defeats Virginia Tech and Eastern Illinois in Season Opener

1/14/2022 8:16:00 PM | Men's Tennis

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 MSU 4, VT 3

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State men's tennis is 2-0 after winning a pair of matches on Friday night in the team's 2022 season opener. The Spartans defeated Virginia Tech in a 4-3 battle before going on to win over Eastern Illinois in the nightcap, 7-0.

In doubles action against the Hokies, the Spartans dropped two matches to find themselves down 0-1. Reed Crocker and Jack Winkler in the No. 2 spot fell 6-4 to Virginia Tech's Alvaro Ariza and Scott Scully, while Luke Baylis and Anthony Pero lost in a 6-3 battle against Carlo Donato and Alberto Orso.

Things got exciting in singles action as the Spartans made up for their deficit. Graydon Lair kicked things off for the Green & White with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Virginia Tech's Scott Scully at No. 5 singles. Carson Gates struggled to find his footing in the No. 1 singles spot, falling in straight sets to Ryan Fishback.

The Spartans went up with a trio of victories in later singles action. Max Sheldon won in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1 against Alex Ix at No. 6, while Jack Winkler battled through a tough second set to come up with a 6-2, 6-4 win in the No. 2 spot. The crowd was on edge as Luke Baylis stood as the deciding point for the Spartans at No. 4 singles. His first set against Alberto Orso ended in a tiebreaker, which Baylis broke with an 8-6 set decision. Found in a similar situation in the second set, Baylis battled back to a 6-2 tiebreaker victory to win his match 7-6, 7-6 and help seal the Spartan victory.

Feeling pretty psyched about win #1 😎 Luke Baylis defeated Virginia Tech's Alberto Orso 7-6, 7-6 to take the first Spartan win of the season, 4-3 🔥 pic.twitter.com/jaM7ZuK6k7
— Michigan State Men's Tennis (@MSU_MTennis) January 15, 2022

Michigan State took on Eastern Illinois in the evening and found themselves up 1-0 after the round of doubles play. The Spartans quickly claimed the first point of the match with wins on all three courts. Gates and Sheldon were the first off with a 6-0 blanking of Tyler Carlin and Charles Courtreau. Lair and Jarreau Campbell defeated Pau Riera and Leighton Brandon 6-2, and the No. 3 duo of Josh Mukherjee and Josh Portnoy sealed the deal with a 6-4 victory.

Mukherjee was the first Spartan to come off the court having defeated his Panther opponent in straight sets, 6-0, 6-1. Josh Portnoy, in his regular-season debut for the Green & White, also won his match at No. 3 singles, 6-0, 6-4. At No. 4, Kazuki Matsuno fought to a 6-4 victory in his first set and a 6-1 decision in the second to pick up another point for MSU.

The No. 1 and 2 singles matches wrapped up the night for the Spartans. Jarreau Campbell in the two-spot won over Charles Courtreau 6-2, 6-3. A battle for the win in the No. 1 spot was the final match of the day. Anthony Pero, down 7-5 after his first set, clawed back for a 6-3 victory in the second to force a ten-point tiebreak set. Facing a 3-3 tie, Pero pulled away with an 8-4 lead after four straight points in his favor. The senior earned the Green & White their final win of the night with a 10-6 win in the final set.

The Spartans are back in action next weekend at home, facing Cleveland State and IUPUI on Saturday starting at 10 a.m.