The LSU men’s tennis team started the ITA Men’s Kick-Off unsuccessfully Sunday with a 4-0 loss to No. 13 California.
The No. 32 Tigers struggled from the outset against the Golden Bears.
The Tigers’ doubles pair of senior Neal Skupski and sophomore James Turbervill coasted to a convincing 8-2 victory over the Golden Bears’ Riki McLachlan and Tommie Murphy, but that would be the Tigers’ only victory Sunday.
The Tigers’ No. 28-ranked doubles pair junior Olivier Borsos and freshman Chris Simpson fell, 8-4, to the Golden Bears’ No. 5-ranked duo of Christoffer Konigsfeldt and Nick Andrews.
The Golden Bears locked up the doubles point with Ben McLachlan and Carlos Cueto’s 8-5 victory over the Tigers’ pair, juniors Stefan Szacinski and Roger Anderson.
California swept the first set on all six courts in singles play, leaving the Tigers in an early hole.
“Ultimately, that was the difference,” said LSU men’s tennis coach Jeff Brown. “It was just too big of a hill to climb.”
Borsos, Skupski and Szacinski then quickly fell in straight sets,
securing the 4-0 victory for the Golden Bears.
“We had a few guys that executed pretty well, but it wasn’t a great day for a couple of the guys,” Brown said. “Sometimes that happens in the second match of the year.”
The remaining three matches were left unfinished, but the Tigers showed signs of life in all of them.
Turbervill had already secured the second set when the match was stopped, and both Simpson and senior Tom Knights were leading in the second set. Brown said he was encouraged by the late surge.
“We were clawing our way back on three of the courts when the match was stopped,” Brown said. “They were able to get to four before we were able to make a comeback that mattered.”
The Tigers will look to rebound Monday against Minnesota who lost to San Diego on Sunday in the second matchup.
The Tigers will be forced to make a quick turnaround after the ITA Kick-Off when they host Clemson in W.T. “Dub” Robinson Stadium on Thursday.
 
____
Contact Spencer Hutchinson at [email protected]