LSU’s men’s and women’s tennis both started off their weekends with a trip to Tulane in New Orleans Friday night.
Men’s weekend at Tulane
The match for the men’s team was going to be difficult as No. 17 Tulane was riding a four-match winning streak going into the weekend, and the lineup was going to be different for the Tigers after a tough loss against Penn State at the Jerry Simmons Invitational.
Freshmen Boris Kozlov and Nick Watson started the doubles match off with a swift victory, 6-1. Kozlov replaced sophomore Malik Bhatnagar in the doubles this week after a decisive 2-6 loss last week in doubles. Senior Shane Monroe and freshman Daniel Moreno are a new duo and looked to find their rhythm but lost, 2-6. Moreno replaced senior Nikola Samardzic.
The untouched duo of junior Rafael Wagner and sophomore Joey Thomas showed they deserve their spot as partners. The duo clinched the doubles point 6-3 giving LSU the 1-0 lead going into singles play.
Early into singles Tulane tied the match 1-1 as Wagner quickly lost to No. 42 junior Luis Erlenbusch, 1-6 and 5-7. Kozlov carried over the doubles success giving LSU the 2-1 lead after passing through his competition winning 6-4 and 6-1.
Tulane didn’t back down, as expected, gaining a 3-2 lead after Watson lost in straight sets, 4-6 and 2-6, and Thomas lost a battle in three sets, 4-6, 7-5 and 6-4. The only two left for LSU were Monroe and Bhatnagar. Monroe showed his veteran presence fighting his way to a three set victory, 7-6(0), 2-6 and 6-2. This tied the match up at 3-3.
Bhatnagar was the last alive for the Tigers. The battle showed that Tulane was deservedly ranked and wouldn’t let LSU steal a match at home. Bhatnagar’s match dramatically went into three sets. He was able to seal the win for LSU, 4-6, 7-6 (7-1), 7-5.
The Tigers rushed onto the court to celebrate an important bounce back win for the team. LSU went to Tulane and defeated the No. 17-ranked team 4-3 in upset fashion.
“Tulane is a very good team, and they do a great job,” co-head coach Andy Brandi said. “These are the sort of battles we want to be in with top-20 teams. We have to use this momentum the rest of the way. We have a lot of room for improvement, and that’s exciting.”
A change in the lineup against Tulane seemed to force the team to compete, and that is what Brandi said he was looking for after the loss. The Tigers continued to show what Brandi was looking for Sunday against Rice.
The doubles point once again started off with Kozlov and Watson winning, 6-2. The important Tigers duo of Wagner and Thomas lost their first doubles match of the year 6-3 giving Rice and opportunity to steal an important early point. Monroe and Moreno didn’t allow that to happen and gave LSU a 1-0 lead after winning their match 6-2.
Singles play started and Nick Watson showed why he was the No. 1 prospect in Louisiana winning both sets 6-2, giving LSU a 2-0 advantage. Monroe couldn’t bounce back from the doubles loss ultimately dropping his match, 1-6 and 2-6. Kozlov covered his teammate regaining the two point lead putting LSU in a strong 3-1 position after his victory.
Thomas rolled through his first set 6-1 and battled for the 7-5 win and clinching for LSU. The remaining two Tigers, Bhatnagar and Wagner, wrapped up their matches after each won in straight sets.
“We are starting to compete really well,” Brandi said. “Our guys are taking care of business. We did a great job today. I really don’t think there’s a lot that we would have asked them to do differently today. Top to bottom, we had great effort and finally got some momentum.”
Women’s weekend
The women weren’t going to be shown up by the men’s team. They punched their ticket to Seattle the weekend prior and set their sights on Tulane early.
The doubles point came early for LSU after freshman Anna Loughlan and sophomore Luba Vasilyuk earned the early victory, 6-2. Shortly after LSU’s No. 9 -ranked duo, senior Jessica Golovin and sophomore Eden Richardson fought for their 7-5 win in a gritty battle. The Lady Tigers took the 1-0 lead heading into singles play and didn’t look to give it up.
Junior Paris Corley continued her dominance winning in straight sets, 6-1 and 6-2. It didn’t take long for the other Lady Tigers to jump on board. Vasilyuk and Loughlan earned their seconds victories of the day also sweeping in straight sets and giving LSU the 4-0 victory.
“Our players did a good job of taking care of their courts under difficult weather conditions,” co-head coach Julia Sell said. “We have been indoors for the past few weeks and coming outside today in the cold and wind was a challenge. Every time we are challenged like this it just makes us stronger and better.”
The Lady Tigers continued their day with a double-header against Rice and Southern. Rice was the first to face the rolling LSU Lady Tigers.
No. 9-ranked duo Golovin and Richardson kept their winning streak up in a 6-2 victory. Senior Kennan Johnson and freshman Anna Loughlan dropped their doubles point in a tough 4-6 loss, but Bridges and Corley were there to back them up with a 6-4 win giving LSU the doubles point and early 1-0 lead.
The first to finish their singles match was Golovin during a clean 6-1 and 6-4 win. Vasilyuk wasn’t far behind with a straight set victory, 6-2 and 6-0. The 2018 ITA rookie of the year, Richardson, toughed out a 7-6(4) and 6-3 win to seal the victory and give LSU a 4-0 lead. The remaining courts of Johnson, Bridges and Corley finished their matches, winning each, ultimately giving the Lady Tigers the 7-0 victory heading into the afternoon.
“I saw a lot of great things,” Sell said. “Rice is a really great team. I think they are hands down the best team we have played so far.”
After their toughest test so far, the afternoon match against cross-town rival, Southern University, was underway with LSU dominating in doubles. No. 30-ranked duo Corley and Bridges dominated their way to a 6-0 victory. No. 9-ranked Golovin and Richardson gave the Lady Tigers the doubles point, 6-1.
Transitioning to singles it was more of the same, success. Bridges, Johnson and Vasilyuk swept their way to the 4-0 victory. The other matches remained unfinished after a quick victory for the Lady Tigers.
The team showed why they were ranked No. 18 this week. They didn’t drop a single point throughout the weekend. Three matches in one weekend, and the Lady Tigers won each before heading to the ITA National Indoor Championship in Seattle, Wash. on Friday giving a major boost of confidence.
“I am really proud of our girls, I thought they raised their level today and stepped up to the challenges today,” Sell said. “We had two girls down 0-5 in their first sets and came back to win. That is what we are looking for is our players competing and not stopping until we are shaking hands at the end. I am very happy with today.”
LSU freshman Rafael Wagner returns the ball during the Tigers' 3-4 loss to Santa Clara at the LSU Tennis Complex on Friday, Feb. 3, 2017.
