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\nDALLAS (SMU) \u2013\u00a0SMU Men’s Tennis is set to open its season against No. 7 Mississippi State and Lamar at Styslinger\/Altec Tennis Complex on Saturday.<\/p>\n
“Always an exciting energy in the building for home matches, season openers and competition against ranked team\u2014and on Saturday, we get to do all three,” said Head Coach Grant Chen<\/a>.<\/p>\n “To open up (the season) against No. 7 Mississippi State and Lamar is going to be electric. Training camp has gone well and the Mustangs are eager to get the 2026 spring campaign started. No better place to be than on The Hilltop!”<\/p>\n Season Opener
Matchup History<\/p>\n
Servin’ Svajda<\/p>\n
New Faces<\/p>\n
Kids Clinic by Coach Kelcy McKenna<\/p>\n
Parking Information<\/p>\n
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\n\tThe last time SMU opened the season against a ranked opponent was in 2016 at No. 12 UCLA. Grant Chen<\/a> was the associate head coach for the Bruins that season.
\n\tSMU has swept nine consecutive\u00a0season opener matches.
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\n\tThis will be the first time SMU and Mississippi State meet in a non-neutral site. The all-time record between the teams is 2-2.
\n\tThe last time SMU faced the Bulldogs was in 2023 at the ITA Kickoff; the Mustangs fell in a tight 4-3 match.
\n\tSvajda defeated\u00a0Mississippi State’s No. 13-ranked Petar Jovanovic in the quarterfinal round of the\u00a0NCAA Singles Championship last fall.
\n\tSMU is 11-0 against Lamar all-time. The Mustangs faced the Cardinals at home in 2021, winning the match 4-1.
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\n\tIn the fall, Svajda defeated seven players ranked in the final ITA Fall Singles rankings.
\n\tHe has wins over Texas A&M’s No. 112 Khololwam Montsi, Baylor’s No. 17 Connor Henry Van Scharlkwyk, Florida’s No. 31 Jeremy Jin, Auburn’s No. 40 Amirkhamza Nasridinov, Illlinois’s No. 10 Kenta Miyoshi, Mississippi State’s No. 13 Petar Jovanovic and NC State’s No. 9 Martin Borisiouk.
\n\tBecame the first Mustang to reach the championship match since Richey Reneberg in 1986. He fell in the final match 4-6, 6-1, 2-6 to defending champion No. 1 Michael Zheng after defeating NC State’s Martin Borisiouk 6-2, 6-0 in the semifinal round of the tournament. Svajda defeated Mississippi State’s Petar Johanovic 6-3, 6-2 in the quarterfinals to become the first Mustang to reach the semifinals\u2014also the first Mustang since Reneberg in 1986.
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\n\tSMU welcomed two\u00a0transfers and one freshman prior to the fall season.
\n\tKrish Arora<\/a> came to the Hilltop after spending two years at Georgia Tech. The\u00a0junior posted a 29-24 singles record as a Yellow Jacket. Arora was ranked as high as No. 19 in the ITA doubles rankings with Clement. Notably, he competed in the 2024 US Junior US Open.
\n\tMatthew Faraci<\/a> hails from Manakin Sabot, Virginia. Faraci is a two-time VISAA Player of the Year and was named All-Metro Richmond Player of the Year this past season. He was undefeated in his two final high school seasons.
\n\tAlex Finkelstein<\/a> joined the Mustangs after three years at Brown. Prior to Brown, the Raynham, Massachusetts, native played his freshman year at Columbia. Played as Brown’s No. 1 singles player, posting an overall record of 17-10 and a 15-8 record in dual match play. He is ranked No. 123 in the final ITA singles rankings and was ranked as high as No. 115 on April 15, 2025. Ended the 2024-25 season as the No. 6 Singles performer in the New England Region by the ITA.
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\n\tSMU Women’s Tennis and Head Coach Kelcy McKenna will be hosting a kids clinic prior to the start of the Mississippi State match at 9-10 am on the outdoor courts.
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\n\tSpectator parking is available at Meadows Garage.
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