The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Bahamian Justin Roberts, in one of his best performances this year, helped the University of South Florida Bulls men’s tennis team pull off a major upset over No.16 Mississippi State University Bulldogs over the weekend.

Playing at home in Tampa, Florida, Roberts defeated Mate Cutura 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 in a come-from-behind victory on Sunday to seal the 4-2 win for the Bulls in their first win over a ranked opponent this season.

“It was good. We were playing a team that was ranked in the top 50 in the country so we knew it was going to be a tough fight,” said Roberts, who was preparing for a final exam during the time of his interview with The Tribune yesterday morning.

“We had a good home crowd. Everybody just fought as best as they could and I managed to turn my match around after I was down a set. I was able to pull through it and pull off the win.”

Roberts, a 20-year-old junior, also teamed up with Peter Bertram to win 6-3 overNuno Borges/Strahinja Rakic for their only doubles victory over MSU.

The 6-0 Roberts is hoping to improve on his 8-2 record in doubles and 3-6 in singles last year. He said he’s excited about the progress he’s made so far this year. “I’m just getting better and better every day so I can only expect great things from here,” he insisted.

Head coach Ashley Fisher said it was a well-deserved win for the team before a crowd of more than 300 persons.

“The crowd was huge. That’s by far the best crowd and most electric atmosphere that I’ve seen at a home match. The message is constantly that we are looking for any edge we can get…the crowd plays a huge role. That’s a huge edge and a huge reason why we won today.”

He further noted that the team performed as expected under the circumstances.

“The guys overall did a fantastic job of feeding off each other and helping each other, and that’s something that we are constantly talking about. Tennis is an individual sport, but that’s the beauty of college tennis. We have our teammates right next to us.”

The Bulls will have this weekend off before they welcome Texas A&M and Pepperdine to Tampa next weekend February 24 and February 26.

The Bulls will also be preparing for their American Athletic Conference Tournament in April and hopefully they will get to compete in the NCAA Championships in May.

“I’m trying to get a little bit better every day,” Roberts said. “I’m working on all my strokes and the mental aspect of my game. I want to be tougher and last a lot stronger in my matches.”

As for the Bulls, Roberts said they are a lot younger, but the win over Mississippi State proved that they are getting better.

“It’s early in the season, but we feel as if we can accomplish some great things this year,” he projected. “I want to see us as a team host NCAAs and the more opponents I beat, the better my ranking will improve for the individual tournaments and even doubles at the end of the year.”

And as a typical Bahamian, Roberts said he’s enjoying every moment of being in school, including getting ready for his final exam that he sat last night.