The LSU men’s tennis team will be back in the NCAA tournament this year after a one-year absence.
The No. 33 Tigers (11-13, 5-6) will likely be either a No. 2 or No. 3 seed, according to LSU men’s coach Jeff Brown. The NCAA tournament team brackets will be unveiled May 3, and the first round begins May 13.
The top 44 teams in the rankings get into the tournament.
LSU lost to No. 5 Georgia, 4-1, in the second round of the Southeastern Conference tournament April 22 after shutting out Alabama.
Brown said the doubles point was the most encouraging part of the tournament.
LSU won the point in both matches, with the No. 10-ranked team of junior Neal Skupski and senior Sebastian Carlsson and the duo of sophomore Olivier Borsos and senior Julien Gauthier going undefeated.
“Our best doubles of the year was against Georgia. We really kept our composure,” Brown said. “All three teams are clicking.”
Meanwhile, the LSU women’s tennis team bowed out in the first round at the SEC tournament, and the Lady Tigers (11-13, 5-6) will not advance to the NCAA tournament.
LSU led 3-1 against Kentucky but could not hold on as junior Whitney Wolf, sophomore Keri Frankenberger and junior Olivia Howlett all lost in singles to give the Wildcats the win. LSU had beaten Kentucky four straight times before last Thursday.
The Lady Tigers had a young team this season with four freshmen and Howlett, a junior college transfer who played in just eight matches.
They also endured four sweeps in conference play, losing 7-0 to Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama and Vanderbilt.
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Contact Rachel Whittaker at [email protected]
Tennis: Men’s team preps for NCAA tourney
April 24, 2011