A pair of losing streaks are on the line Wednesday in New Orleans.
The LSU women’s tennis team, mired in a three-match skid to begin the 2011 season, travels to the Big Easy for the second time in two weeks to take on Tulane (2-4) at 2 p.m.
The Tigers (0-3) faced Texas Tech in the New Orleans Hilton on Feb. 2 in a match moved from W.T. “Dub” Robinson Stadium due to inclement weather.
LSU dropped the match to the Red Raiders, 5-1.
The Tigers, winless on the season, can point to a startling 0-6 start in doubles as the root of their struggles.
“We had match points against [Texas] A&M in No. 1 doubles, and we were up in No. 3 doubles, and we were up against Rice,” said LSU coach Tony Minnis. “One thing we emphasized all week is that we weren’t doing a very good job of serving and returning. Until you get to the point where you can actually get the point going, you’re going to have trouble.”
Minnis’ squad has competed respectably in singles play, splitting the six matches in each of their last two outings. But the doubles losses have proven too difficult to overcome in the 4-3 defeats at the hands of Rice and Texas A&M.
Another thorn in the Tigers’ side has been the odometer.
To open the spring season, LSU has traveled to Charlottesville, Va.; New Orleans; Houston and College Station, Texas.
The team now faces trips to New Orleans and Dallas before taking their home court for the first time on Feb. 26.
With constant travel and chilly temperatures, the practice schedule has been drastically altered.
“We went pretty much a month where we we’re all over the city trying to figure out what we’re going to do,” Minnis said. “With the last couple of days we’ve had … the consistency that comes with being able to practice should pay.”
Minnis hopes practice benefits are coming at just the right time.
“It’s definitely a rivalry,” said Minnis of the Tulane match. “We know they’re going to be up for us. We’ve just got to be ready to play.”
LSU won last season’s tilt at the “Dub,” 4-3.
 
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