Men’s Tennis Central: Tennessee At #5 Mississippi State, #6 LSU

Tennessee men's tennis will embark on a two-match road trip over the weekend, playing No. 5 Mississippi State on Friday at 3 p.m. CT at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre in Starkville and No. 6 LSU on Sunday at noon CT at the LSU Tennis Complex in Baton Rouge.

Live stream and live video can be found on each university's page, which is linked HERE for Mississippi State and HERE for LSU.

LAST TIME OUT
The Big Orange went 1-2 in the three-match homestand last weekend, losing to Auburn, 4-3, and Oklahoma, 4-1, and ending the stretch with a 6-1 win over Belmont. Singles play was the UT's strong point on the weekend, with the Vols going 10-6 in singles matches played last Friday and Sunday.

SHOWING OUT FOR THE 865
Two Knoxville natives, Jose Garcia and Alejandro Moreno, were ranked in the latest ITA rankings posted Tuesday. It was Garcia's first career appearance in the polls, coming in at No. 78 after he picked up his first two ranked collegiate wins over the two-week period. Moreno has been ranked since the start of the campaign, claiming his fifth consecutive occurrence in the top 125 at No. 88.

SINGLES SWEEP
The Vols have shown they can make a comeback, sweeping singles twice in the past two non-conference matches after dropping the doubles point. The sweep last Sunday night was the fourth time this season the Big Orange has not lost on a singles court in 2025-26, shutting out Bellarmine, EKU, Chattanooga and Belmont.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
MSU is ranked in the top ten for a reason, tallying a 11-2 record in the dual season with four top-25 wins. The Bulldogs' only losses have come against No. 1 Virginia and No. 3 Texas.

The Vols and the No. 5 Bulldogs played last season, when MSU was able to squeak out a 4-3 triumph. Despite that result in 2025, Tennessee leads the all-time series against Mississippi State, 41-28.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS
LSU has been busy since the start of the dual season, playing sixteen matches over the past two months. The Tigers have been able to grind out a 14-2 record. Their performance since the start of 2026 has earned them a spot in the top ten at No. 6.

The Tigers and Volunteers have played over 70 matches since the first contest took place in 1952. The Big Orange claim a slight edge over the Tigers in the all-time series, 37-33.

VOLUNTEERS IN THE RANKINGS
Singles
#78 – Jose Garcia
#88 – Alejandro Moreno

BULLDOGS IN THE RANKINGS
Singles
#8 - Petar Jovanovic
#39 - Mario Martinez Serrano
#55 - Benito Sanchez Martinez
#92 - Bryan Hernandez Cortes
#125 - Niccolo Baroni

Doubles
#5 - Benito Sanchez Martinez/Petar Jovanovic
#38 - Bryan Hernandez Cortes/Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes
#72 - Michal Novansky/Mario Martinez Serrano

TIGERS IN THE RANKINGS
Singles
#54 - Erik Arutiunian
#117 - Andrej Loncarevic

Doubles
#59 - Matias Ponce De Leon/Erik Arutiunian
#66 - Andrej Loncarevic/Sasa Markovic

UP NEXT
The Vols will start a three-match homestand with a competition against Arkansas on March 13 at 5 p.m. ET, and then the Big Orange will play a doubleheader against Alabama and Mercer on March 15.

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Men’s Tennis Central: Tennessee At #5 Mississippi State, #6 LSU

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Players Mentioned

Jose Garcia

Alejandro Moreno

University of Tennessee Athletics