Both the LSU men’s and women’s tennis team advanced in the first round of their ITA Kickoff Weekend tournaments Saturday, getting one step closer to qualifying for the ITA National Indoor Championships.
Two and a half hours is what the men’s team had to sit through due weather conditions, before finally taking the court against Mississippi State University in Tampa, Florida.
 When the wind subsided and the courts dried up, the Tigers came out to play.
The duo of senior Andrew Korinek and sophomore Gabor Csonka won the first doubles court, beating Bulldogs junior Rishab Agarwal and freshman Trevor Foshey, 6-3.
Senior Tam Trinh and junior Justin Butsch followed with a 6-4 win to clinch the doubles point.
“I’m really proud of the guys for handling the conditions today. It was not typical Florida by any means,” said LSU coach Jeff Brown in a news release. “Ultimately, it was a really good team win. The kind that as a coach you are really proud of.”
In singles, the Tigers were off to a more troubling start with sophomore Simon Freund losing to Bulldog freshman Nuno Borges, 6-3 and 6-4.
However, Csonka, Butsch and Korinek all came out victorious of their single matches to turn it around for the Tigers, defeating MSU 4-1 to advance to the next round against the University of Southern Florida in the championship round.
The No. 21 LSU women’s team finished the first day with another sweep, beating No. 35 DePaul University, 4-0.
Senior Ella Taylor and junior Skylar Holloway started the winning streak for the Tigers, defeating Blue Demons’ seniors Zaina Sufi and Jarret Fisher, 6-3, while No. 93 senior Skylar Kuykendall and her doubles partner junior Abigail Owens won 6-4 to end doubles play.
“We came together and beat a very good DePaul team,” said LSU coach Julia Sell in a news release. “I really respect how that team competes, and taking a victory today is exactly what we needed to prepare us for tomorrow.”
Sophomore Ryann Foster, junior Skylar Holloway and Kuykendall then completed the sweep beating their matchups in two sets each, leaving the other three matchups unfinished.
The Tigers will meet Georgia Tech in the final round on Sunday.
You can reach Markus Hufner on Twitter @Hufner_TDR