NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The LSU men’s tennis team’s third-consecutive win proved to be just out of the Tigers’ reach on Friday, as Vanderbilt rallied to a 4-3 victory at the Currey Tennis Center in Nashville, Tenn.
“We definitely had our chances to close out the match today,” said LSU head coach Jeff Brown. “It’s always disappointing to lose close matches like this, but we just need to bounce back and get ready for Kentucky. No team is going to hand you a match in the SEC and we just didn’t put Vanderbilt away today.”
With the overall score of the Southeastern Conference duel knotted a 3-3, Vanderbilt’s Josh Tarkoff rebounded from a first-set deficit to clinch the Commodore victory over Cory Ross on court No. 6, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5. The match was moved indoors late in the third set due to a band of heavy rain.
The Tigers fell to an overall record of 5-8 on the season and dropped to an SEC mark of 0-7. With the win, Vanderbilt notched its first conference win of the year and improved to an 8-8 overall record. The Commodores own a 1-7 SEC record this season.
LSU jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in Friday’s contest as the Tigers claimed the doubles point. The Tigers’ combination of Dan Kiernan and Jason Hazley earned an 8-4 victory on court No. 1, while Sebastian Rutka and Ross clinched the vital point on court No. 2, 8-5.
In singles play, the Tigers recorded wins on courts No. 3 and No. 5. LSU’s Hazley knocked off the Commodores’ Zach Dailey on court No. 3, 6-4, 6-2.
With the win, the Tigers’ freshman improved his overall record to 20-13 on the season. Rutka, LSU’s sophomore from Krakow, Poland, rallied to defeat Jens Frederiksen, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, for the Tigers’ third-and-final point of the afternoon on court No. 5.
The LSU men’s tennis team will next be in action on Sunday at 2 p.m. as the Tigers challenge the seventh-ranked Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington, Ky.
Vanderbilt 4, LSU 3
Doubles
1. Kiernan/Hazley (LSU) def. Reynolds/Smith (VU), 8-4
2. Rutka/Ross (LSU) def. Harris/Brown (VU), 8-5
3. Dailey/Tarkoff (VU) led Nicholson/Fisher (LSU) 8-7 susp.
Singles
1. #30 Bobby Reynolds (VU) def. #87 Dan Kiernan (LSU), 7-5, 6-2
2. Chad Harris (VU) def. Peter Richman (LSU), 6-4, 6-4
3. Jason Hazley (LSU) def. Zach Dailey (VU), 6-4, 6-2
4. Scott Brown (VU) def. Bryan Fisher (LSU), 6-4, 6-1
5. Sebastian Rutka (LSU) def. Jens Frederiksen (VU), 1-6, 6-3, 6-4
6. Josh Tarkoff (VU) def. Cory Ross (LSU), 3-6, 6-3, 7-5