Huskers Fall to #36 Spartans

Up against a strong Spartans singles lineup, the Big Red rallied but came up short on Sunday afternoon. The No. 49 Nebraska men’s tennis team fell to 9-5 (2-2 Big Ten) after its 0-4 loss to No. 36 Michigan State (8-5, 4-0 Big Ten). MSU brought four ranked singles players to Lincoln, and in the end, stifled the Big Red by giving up only three sets on the day.

The Sunday dual started with doubles competition, with familiar duos on each court. At No. 1 doubles, Calvin Mueller and Nikloay Sysoev closed first, taking down Sheldon/Sheldon 7-5. On Court Two, Anton Shepp and Henry Bilicic battled back from 1-3 to keep it close, but Thanos/Rakhmatullayev sealed the MSU win, 6-3. The doubles point came down to No. 3 doubles, where Leo Linquet and Colson Wells fell 7-5 to Al-Azmeh/Radjenovic.

After the Spartans clinched the doubles point, singles action began at the Dillon Tennis Center. Linquet was the first Husker to finish, falling to Michigan State’s Radjenovic on Court Five, 6-1, 6-4. Sysoev was next to complete his match, defeated by No. 78 Max Sheldon 7-5, 6-4, on Court Three. Up at No. 1 singles, No. 4 Ozan Baris bested No. 81 Mueller, 6-4, 7-5, to clinch the win for MSU.

Courts two, four, and six were left unfinished after the Spartans secured the victory over NU. Shepp was even with No. 21 Thanos on court two, 4-6, 6-4, 1-1. On Court Four, Roni Hietaranta trailed No. 63 Matthew Forbes 6-7 [3-7], 3-5. At No. 6 singles, Wells’ match was also abandoned, leading Mitchell Sheldon 6-3, 3-6, 4-3. 

The Huskers leave the weekend 2-2 in Big Ten play, the same conference-opening stretch through four duals as the team had in 2023-24. MSU also pulled ahead in the all-time series history between programs, notching its ninth win over Nebraska (9-8). Mueller and Sysoev’s No. 1 doubles win was the lone Husker victory of the day, and the pair’s seventh of the season. 

UP NEXT
The Big Red hit the road for two conference matches next weekend, visiting Penn State and Ohio State. The Huskers take on the No. 64 Nittany Lions first, with the dual slated for 4 p.m. (CT) on Friday, March 21. Then, NU faces No. 4 Ohio State on Sunday, March 23 at 11 a.m. (CT). Both duals will have live stats available.

#36 Michigan State 4, #49 Nebraska 0
Doubles competition:
1. Calvin Mueller/Nikolay Sysoev (NEB) def. Max Sheldon/Mitchell Sheldon (MSU) 7-5
 2. Aristotelis Thanos/Danial Rakhmatullayev (MSU) def. Anton Shepp/Henry Bilicic (NEB) 6-3
3. Taym Alazmeh/Vuk Radjenovic (MSU) def. Colson Wells/Leo Linquet (NEB) 7-5

Singles competition:
1. #4 Ozan Baris (MSU) def. #81 Calvin Mueller (NEB) 6-4, 7-5
2. Anton Shepp (NEB) vs. #21 Aristotelis Thanos (MSU) 4-6, 6-4, 1-1 UF
3. #78 Max Sheldon (MSU) def. Nikolay Sysoev 7-5, 6-4
4. Roni Hietaranta (NEB) vs. #63 Matthew Forbes (MSU) 6-7 [3-7], 3-5 UF
5. Vuk Radjenovic (MSU) def. Leo Linquet (NEB) 6-1, 6-4
6. Colson Wells (NEB) vs. Mitchell Sheldon (MSU) 6-3, 3-6, 4-3

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