The LSU men’s tennis team will face off against Clemson today at 1 p.m. in a battle of the Tigers and the first home match of the season.
LSU is coming off a commanding 4-0 victory against No. 25 Minnesota in the ITA Kick-Off weekend on Sunday, and the Tigers are now 2-1 in the young season, with their only loss coming from No. 13 California.
LSU men’s tennis coach Jeff Brown said the quick start this season is a nice change from the team’s slower starts in previous seasons.
“We’ve played some good teams, and we’ve gotten a couple good wins already,” Brown said. “We’re a little bit ahead of where we’ve been in the last few years.”
Thursday’s match will be No. 70 Clemson’s second-straight away match following a 7-0 loss to No. 4 Georgia, but Brown said it would be a mistake to underestimate them.
“They’re a much-improved team this year from last year,” Brown said. “They have a lot more depth now. They’re a very dangerous team.”
Clemson’s No. 59-ranked Yannick Maden will be the biggest threat on the court today.
Maden is the highest-ranked singles player on either team and will most likely square off with LSU’s No. 68-ranked junior Olivier Borsos.
LSU’s No. 28 doubles team of Borsos and freshman Chris Simpson will lead the Tigers in doubles.
Doubles has been key for the Tigers’ success this season. In the Tigers’ two wins against Rice and Minnesota, the Tigers are 5-1 in doubles matches, taking the doubles point both times.
In singles play, sophomore James Turbervill will hope to duplicate his stellar performance against Minnesota.
Turbervill and doubles partner, senior Neal Skupski, picked up a key victory to seal the doubles point. In singles, Turbervill secured a double tiebreaker win to help lock up the 4-0 victory.
Brown said one of his main focuses this season will be increasing fan attendance at home matches. In an effort to draw a larger crowd at today’s match, free pizza will be served before the match starts.
“As a program, we’re certainly trying to get some more people up there to see what’s going on out there,” Brown said.
 
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Contact Spencer Hutchinson at [email protected]