BATON ROUGE — Four Tigers and two Lady Tigers were recognized Wednesday when the International Tennis Association released its first NCAA preseason rankings.
The doubles team of Bryan Fisher and Jason Hazley earned LSU’s highest ranking. The pair was listed as seventh in the nation after posting a 22-11 record last year.
Fisher, a senior, and Hazley, a junior, were the 21st-ranked team in the nation at the end of the spring 2003 season. ITA also ranked LSU junior Peter Richman 36th in singles.
Richman was 5-5 last year at No.1 singles and earned six victories over top-100 ranked opponents. Teammate Sebastian Rutka, a senior, was ranked 89th.
Lady Tigers Rocio Fantilli and Lauren Seaman were 38th in Wednesday’s doubles poll. The senior Fantilli was also ranked 99th in the singles poll. The pair posted victories last year over 1st and 10th ranked teams. Fantilli was 16-20 last year in No. 1 singles and 17-12 in doubles.
“This is a good accomplishment for Rocio and Lauren,” said Lady Tigers head coach Tony Minnis. “They really came on in the end of the season. Rocio has the potential to be a big time player, and the ranking is really great for her right now.”
Fisher and Hazley were among four doubles teams from the SEC to make the top ten. The SEC also dominated the men’s singles poll with nine out of the top 25 players.
The men’s tennis team will begin their fall schedule Saturday, Sept. 12, at the Crowne Plaza Invitational in Houston. The women will also debut in Houston at the Rice Invitational on Sept. 26.