STARKVILLE, Miss. — The 17th-ranked LSU men’s tennis team looks to begin Southeastern Conference play with a win on Sunday, as the Tigers challenge the 18th-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs at 1 p.m. here at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre in Starkville, Miss.
“The SEC is definitely one of the hardest conferences to play in,” said LSU head coach Jeff Brown. “Every one of our SEC matches is going to be a challenge this season, and tomorrow will be especially tough because Mississippi State is great team, and they play really well when they are at home.”
LSU heads into Sunday’s match with an overall record of 5-1. The Tigers’ lone loss of the season was on the road in a 4-3 heartbreaker at the hands of sixth-ranked Texas A&M in College Station, Texas.
Mississippi State enters Sunday’s dual match with a 5-2 overall record on the season and an 0-1 mark in SEC play. The Bulldogs’ have only dropped matches to 10th-ranked Ole Miss (4-1) and 15th-ranked South Alabama (4-3) this season. Both teams are coming off of 7-0 wins over Louisiana-Lafayette during the past week.
The Tigers’ seventh-ranked Ajay Ramaswami and 69th-ranked Jessie Smatt will lead the LSU tennis team into battle against Mississippi State on Sunday. Ramaswami heads into the SEC confrontation with a 17-7 overall record, while Smatt looks to extend his five-match winning streak.
Mississippi State possesses three-ranked singles players in No. 16 Romain Ambert, No. 37 Rene’-Charles Combette, and No. 48 Marco Baron. Ambert has accumulated a 20-7 overall record this season.
LSU has earned a 6-1 record against the Bulldogs in the last-six years and have been victorious in two of the previous three matches played between the teams in Starkville, Miss. Last season, the Tigers handily defeated Mississippi State, 5-2, at home in Baton Rouge.
The 17th-ranked LSU men’s tennis team will face the 18th-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Starkville, Miss.