It has been a difficult stretch for Vanderbilt Men’s Tennis. Following a 6-2 start that saw Vanderbilt rolling into the heart of SEC play, the Commodores have now dropped six straight since Feb. 28. Vanderbilt’s ranking fell from No. 32 on Feb. 25 to No. 55 in the newest edition of the ITA rankings.
After dropping a road match in Malibu against the Pepperdine Waves on March 9, the Commodores headed back home to take on No. 16 ranked Mississippi State on March 13 in Nashville. Vanderbilt fell 1-6 before faltering against Kentucky (2-4) two days later.
Vanderbilt vs. Mississippi State
The Commodores got off to a strong start on the doubles side after the tandem of Danil Panarin and Pablo Martinez Gomez notched a 6-3 win over the Bulldogs’ Niccolo Baroni and Mario Martinez Serrano. Mississippi State quickly recovered at third doubles as Bulldog teammates Dusan Milanovic and Michal Novansky defeated Dylan Charlap and Henry Ruger, 6-3. The deciding match on Court One saw Vanderbilt’s top doubles pairing of junior Nathan Cox and senior Michael Ross lead throughout the entire set, taking a 6-5 lead over the No. 4 doubles team in the country in Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez. The Commodore duo couldn’t hold on, though, dropping the next game and the tiebreaker, 7-2.
Vanderbilt didn’t see much success on the singles side either. Panarin notched the only victory for the Commodores, knocking off Jovanovic in a come-from-behind fashion, 1-6, 6-1, 6-4. Panarin’s was the only contest that went to three sets, with the remaining Commodores all falling in straight sets.
Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky
The Commodores traveled to Lexington, Kentucky, to take on the Wildcats, the defending SEC Champions. While Kentucky isn’t the same team that finished 2024 with a 24-2 (12-0 SEC) record and a quarterfinal appearance in the NCAA Tournament, the No. 30 Wildcats still posed a formidable challenge on their home court against Vanderbilt.
Vanderbilt pounced on the Wildcats early, as Gomez and Panarin secured the doubles point with a thrilling 7-6 (5) victory at second doubles over Kentucky’s Antoine Ghibaudo and Jaden Weekes. The Commodores extended their lead to 2-0 after Ross made quick work of Kentucky’s Charlelie Cosnet, 6-4, 6-1. Despite facing a deficit, the Wildcats swept the remaining four straight singles matches. Kentucky’s first-year prodigy Ghibuado defeated Cox at No. 1 singles, 6-2, 6-3, while Jack Loutit downed Panarin, 6-3, 6-4, at second singles. Kentucky followed that up with Weekes’ three-set win over Gomez at third singles and Eli Stephenson’s clincher over Hugo Coquelin on Court Six.
Vanderbilt will open a homestand against No. 13 ranked Texas A&M on March 21 before taking on Florida on March 23 as part of the program’s alumni weekend.
