The No. 7 seed LSU men’s tennis team won its first match at the Southeastern Conference Championship, 4-1, against No. 10 seed South Carolina in College Station, Texas, on Thursday.
The Tigers (17-7, 6-6 SEC) jumped out to an early lead against the Gamecocks (15-15, 3-9 SEC), claiming the doubles point before winning three of the first four singles matches to clinch the victory.
LSU coach Jeff Brown said his team bounced back after having a couple tough doubles losses. He said it was important to start quickly because the teams have historically played close matches.
“In this particular match, [winning the doubles point] was important because they present us with some matchup challenges,” Brown said.
The No. 20 doubles pairing of sophomore Jordan Daigle and junior Boris Arias prevailed, 6-3, against South Carolina’s seniors Thiago Pinheiro and Kyle Koch. Senior Chris Simpson and sophomore Justin Butsch followed with a 6-2 victory against freshman Thomas Mayronne and sophomore Sam Swank on Court 2 to seize the first point of the match.
The Tigers didn’t rest on the early lead. They claimed the first two courts of singles play to extend their lead to 3-0.
Arias continued LSU’s fast start, defeating sophomore Andrew Schafer 6-2, 6-2 on Court 3. Brown said Schafer is one of South Carolina’s “toughest outs” and Arias handled the match extremely well.
Butsch followed with a 6-3, 6-1 win against Swank to put LSU within a point of clinching the match.
The Gamecocks cut LSU’s lead to 3-1 when Koch defeated Simpson 6-3, 6-4, on Court 2, but LSU freshman Simon Freund ended any hope of a comeback by clinching the match on Court 6.
Freund defeated Mayronne 6-3, 6-4, sending LSU into the next round of the competition for a rematch against No. 2 seed Texas A&M. Brown said Freund handled the pressure well after coming up short in a tight three-set loss at Mississippi State last Sunday.
“He handled it just a little bit better, and it was good to see him have the opportunity to have the pressure on him and come through,” Brown said.
The Tigers now shift their focus to the Aggies, a familiar foe who LSU last played on April 9.
The Aggies defeated the Tigers, 4-0, in the final match at W.T. “Dub” Robinson Stadium. The match marked the only time the Tigers have been shutout this season.
Texas A&M is ranked sixth in the latest ITA rankings and boasts the nation’s No. 11 doubles team in juniors Harrison Adams and Shane Vinsant. Brown said despite playing the tournament host, it’s just another road match.
You can reach Jack Woods on Twitter @Jack_TDR.