MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The men's tennis team dropped a pair of matches against some of the nation's top teams Saturday at the Blue-Gray National Tennis Classic. The Big Red fell to 15th-ranked Mississippi State, 4-0, before falling to 14th-ranked Auburn, 4-2.
 
Rain forced the postponement of all four matches scheduled for Friday, meaning all eight teams in the field were forced to play two matches apiece Saturday. The scoring format was modified to play-to-decision – meaning the match ended the moment a team gained its fourth point to clinch the victory. This format also changed doubles play to an as-necessary basis.
 
In the opener, 59th-ranked Cornell (5-7) was defeated in straight sets in four of the six singles matches. The Bulldogs were one game away from winning a fifth, but sophomore Venkat Iyer was up by a set in his No. 1 singles match against 71st-ranked Arten Ilyushin of the Bulldogs.
 
The afternoon match featured a pair of Big Red singles victories from freshmen Danny Riggs and Jason Luu at the Nos. 3 and 6 spots, respectively. Riggs was even after a pair of games in his match, but Auburn's Dennis Lengsfeld retired to give the Big Red the match's first point. Luu defeated Rafael Rondino in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, to account for Cornell's other point. Freshman Sam Fleck forced a third set at No. 2 before falling to Auburn's Alex Stamchev in the match-clincher.
 
The Big Red will wrap up play at the event against 49th-ranked Alabama at 11 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on Sunday. The Crimson Tide defeated Clemson, 4-2, on Saturday after losing to Texas Tech, 4-0, earlier in the day.
 
#14 AUBURN 4, #59 CORNELL 2
Blue-Gray National Tennis Classic
Saturday, Feb. 25
At Lagoon Park; Montgomery, Ala.
Singles
1. #23 Andreas Mies (A) def. Venkat Iyer, 6-1, 6-1
2. Alex Stamchev (A) vs. Sam Fleck, 5-7, 6-0, 6-0
3. Danny Riggs (C) def. Dennis Lengsfeld, 1-1 retired
4. Lukas Ollert (A) def. Alex Sidney, 6-2, 7-5
5. Lucas Lopasso (A) def. Quoc-Daniel Nguyen, 6-2, 6-1
6. Jason Luu (C) def. Rafael Rondino, 6-4, 6-4
 
#15 MISSISSIPPI STATE 4, #59 CORNELL 0
Blue-Gray National Tennis Classic
Saturday, Feb. 25
At Lagoon Park; Montgomery, Ala.
Singles
1. Venkat Iyer (C) vs. #71 Artem Ilyushin, 7-6(1), 1-3 (susp.)
2. James Chaudry (MSU) vs. Sam Fleck, 6-2, 5-2 (susp.)
3. #109 Malte Stropp (MSU) def. Danny Riggs, 6-2, 6-0
4. #83 Louis Cant (MSU) def. Alex Sidney, 6-2, 6-1
5. #42 George Coupland (MSU) def. Quoc-Daniel Nguyen, 6-1, 6-4
6. Zach White (MSU) def. Jason Luu, 6-1, 6-2