Gamecocks Face Off with No. 54 Bulldogs, No. 44 Rebels

Columbia, S.C. – No. 42 South Carolina is set to host No. 54 Mississippi State and No. 44 Ole Miss this weekend. The Gamecocks will take on the Bulldogs on Friday at 5 p.m. and will face the Rebels on Sunday at noon.
 
Gamecock Notables

• In the ITA Collegiate Tennis Rankings sponsored by Tennis Point, doubles pair No. 38 Megan Davies and Sarah Hamner received their first ranking of the season. No. 2 Hamner, No. 61 Ayana Akli, No. 86 Elise Mills, No. 23 Hamner/Misa Malkin and No. 71 Akli/Malkin also received rankings.
• South Carolina is 8-7 this season with a 3-3 record in SEC play. It has SEC wins over LSU, then-No. 16 Tennessee and Missouri.
• Both Hamer and Mills have 10 singles wins each this season. Close behind is Akli with eight.
• Akli is on a three-match winning streak in singles while Hamner is on an eight-match winning streak.
• Davies has clinched the match for the Gamecocks twice this season in the upset over Tennessee and the recent win at Missouri. 
• South Carolina has seven wins in both the Nos. 1 and 3 doubles spots in dual matches. It has won the doubles point in eight of its matches.

 
Scouting the Bulldogs

• No. 54 Mississippi State is 10-8 this season including an 0-4 record on the road. It is 1-5 in SEC play with a win over Alabama. 
• The Bulldogs are coming off a double-header against Alabama and Alcorn State in which they won in 4-2 and 4-1 decisions, respectively. 
• At ITA Kickoff Weekend, Mississippi State advanced to the finals but fell to then-No. 3 Georgia, halting their chances of making the ITA National Team Indoor Championship.
• The Bulldogs have the most singles wins in the No. 1 position with 11.
• Mississippi State has not won a doubles point in any of its SEC matches this season.
• The Bulldogs boast ranked players in No. 95 Emmanouela Antonaki, No. 123 Tamara Rice and No. 61 Magda Adaloglou/Chloe Cirotte.
• The eight Bulldogs are led by head coach Daryl Greenan, associate head coach Sachin Kirtane and student assistant coach Valeria Nikolaev.

 
The Mississippi State Series

• South Carolina is 31-2 all-time against Mississippi State, including a 15-2 record at home.
• The Gamecocks own the longest winning streak in the series at 26 matches from 1992 to 2015. Currently, they are on a five-match winning streak.
• In the last meeting at home, South Carolina came away with the 4-1 win in which Mississippi State earned its lone point in the No. 2 singles spot.
• Most recently, the Gamecocks took down the Bulldogs 4-1 on the road.

 
Scouting the Rebels

• No. 44 Ole Miss is 8-6 this season and is 0-3 on the road. In SEC play, it is 2-4. 
• The Rebels have SEC wins over LSU and then-No. 31 Alabama.
• Most recently, Ole Miss dropped its home match against then-No. 7 Auburn 4-3.
• The Rebels also advanced to the final of ITA Kickoff Weekend but missed their chance to make the ITA National Team Indoor Championship with a close 4-3 loss to Old Dominion.
• In singles, Ole Miss has a winning record in all six spots. It is 9-3 in the No. 6 spot, 8-4 in the Nos. 1, 2 and 5 spots, and 6-5 in the Nos. 3 and 4 spots.
• As for doubles, Ole Miss has the best record in the No. 3 spot at 9-5.
• Ole Miss has ranked singles players in No. 39 Tiphanie Fiquet, No. 69 Sabina Machalova and No. 120 Anaelle Leclercq-Ficher.
• Ahead of Sunday’s match, Ole Miss will face No. 16 Florida on the road.
• The nine women on the Rebels roster are led by head coach Mark Beyers, assistant coach Grant Roberts and volunteer assistant coach Brad Bolton.

 
The Ole Miss Series

• The Gamecocks are 25-16 against Ole Miss and boast an 11-5 home record
• South Carolina is currently on a nine-match winning streak which is the longest streak in the series. Of those nine wins, three of them took place at home.
• The Gamecocks have dropped no more than two points in each of the last nine matches. Not one of those points was the doubles point.
• In the last home meeting, South Carolina came out on top in a 4-0 decision.

 
Match Day Coverage

• Mississippi State: the match can be watched here and live scoring can be found here. In addition, Cracked Racquets Redzone SEC Coverage for Friday’s match can be found here.
• Ole Miss: live video can be found here and live scoring can be found here.

 
Fan Information

• Sunday’s match will be Garnet Aces Kids Day and Gamecock Tennis shirts will be available for pickup in youth medium, youth large and youth extra-large sizes.
• Want to be in the loop on all things South Carolina Tennis? Join the Garnet Aces today to receive an exclusive weekly newsletter and earn special rewards. Fans can join Garnet Aces via this link.