BATON ROUGE — The LSU women’s tennis team is set to open its 2002 dual-match season on Saturday, as the Lady Tigers host both the Centenary Ladies (1 p.m.) and the Southern Lady Jaguars (4 p.m.) in a double-header at the W.T. “Dub” Robinson Tennis Stadium.
“This is always a big weekend for our team,” said LSU head coach Tony Minnis. “You always want to get the season started on a good note and that’s what we’re looking to do in tomorrow’s matches. Both Southern and Centenary have improved tremendously over the years and they are only going to get better with time.”
The Lady Tigers have never been defeated by either Southern or Centenary.
LSU owns a significant 14-0 record against the Ladies and an 8-0 mark versus the Lady Jaguars. Last season, the Tigers defeated Centenary in their season opener, 7-0, while Southern fell to LSU, 6-0, a week later.
LSU’s Tami Botts heads into Saturday’s contests as the only ranked player in the event. The Lady Tigers’ senior from Ashland, Ore., is the nation’s 87th-ranked singles player and possesses an impressive 8-3 overall record.
The Lady Tigers’ three-time All-American and 2001 Southeastern Conference Player of the Year, Bruna Colosio, spent the fall season recovering from a shoulder injury, therefore couldn’t be ranked by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. She advanced to the quarterfinal round of the 2001 NCAA Singles Championships and began the 2001 fall season as the sixth-ranked player in the nation.
The LSU women’s tennis team will open its dual-match season on Saturday, as the Lady Tigers host Centenary at 1 p.m. and Southern at 4 p.m. at the W.T. “Dub” Robinson Tennis Stadium. Admission is free to all LSU home tennis matches.