NEW ORLEANS — One LSU singles player and one doubles team remain in the SEC Coaches’ Indoor Championships heading into tomorrow’s quarterfinal rounds.
Ken Skupski, the tournament’s third seed, was the only Tiger left in the singles draw after Saturday’s matches. He used a third-set surge to overcome Ole Miss’ Bram ten Berge in the round of 32. He then beat Juan Pablo DiCesare of Ole Miss, 7-5, 6-2 to move into the quarterfinals.
“Ken continues to improve,” said LSU head coach Jeff Brown. “He showed me a lot in fall and he continues on the right path. It’s a good sign that he can win when not playing his best and when he does it s a lot easier.”
Skupski will face Luiz Carvalho of Mississippi State tomorrow. Carvalho has upset two seeded opponents so far in the singles draw.
Skupski and doubles partner Mark Growcott are still alive after a tough doubles match with Auburn’s Ben Lathouwers and Alex Schweizer. They won, 8-5, and will face Florida’s Stefan Tell and Greg Oulette tomorrow.
“They had one of the toughest draws with that huge serving team from Auburn,” Brown said. “It wasn’t easy so it was a good win.”
Peter Richman survived the round of 32 when No. 49-ranked Strahinja Bobusic of Georgia retired in the third set. He faced No. 47-ranked Greg Oullette of Florida in his second match and lost, 6-3, 6-4.
“Peter beat a top 50 opponent by hanging in there. He picked up his game after dropping the first set,” Brown said.
Growcott and Danny Bryan were both eliminated in the second round by seeded players. Colt Gaston fell in three sets to Tennessee’s Mark Dietrich and Jason Hazley lost after a second-set tiebreaker to Auburn’s Alex Schweizer.
Paul White and Kevin Dessauer almost pulled off a big doubles win over Kentucky’s Jesse Witten and Marcus Sundh. They had an early lead but lost in a tiebreaker, 9-8 (6).
Tomorrow’s singles matches begin at 10 a.m. at the Hilton Riverside Racquet Club in downtown New Orleans. They will be followed by the singles semifinals and doubles quarterfinals and semifinals.
“It’s going to start becoming about fitness,” Brown said of the next few rounds. “If you’re still playing at this point you’re facing good opponents.”
Four seeded singles players remain in the tournament as well as two seeded doubles teams.
2005 SEC COACHES INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
Tournament Agate
Day 3 – Saturday, Jan. 15
Singles
Round of 32
#13 (3) Ken Skupski (LSU) def. Bram ten Berg (UM), 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2
#63 (8) Vlad Obradovic (UF) def. Danny Bryan (LSU), 6-3, 6-4
Alex Schweizer (AUB) def. (9-16) Jason Hazley (LSU), 6-3, 7-6 (5)
Peter Richman (LSU) def. (9-16) Strahinja Bobusic, 2-6, 7-5, 2-0, ret.
(9-16) Antonio Ruiz (UGA) def. Mark Growcott (LSU), 6-1, 6-4
Mark Dietrich (UT) def. Colt Gaston (LSU), 7-5, 4-6, 6-4
Round of 16
#12 (3) Ken Skupski (LSU) def. Juan Pablo DiCesare (UM), 7-5, 6-2
#47 (7) Greg Oullette (UF) def. Peter Richman (LSU), 6-3, 6-4
Doubles
Round of 16
#13 (1) Skupski/Growcott (LSU) def. Lathouwers/Schweizer (AUB), 8-5
Witten/Sundh (UK) def. White/Dessauer (LSU), 9-8 (6)
Consolation Matches
Kevin Dessauer (LSU) def. Jordan Jones (MSU), 6-3, 6-0
Paul White (LSU) def. Kaden Hensel, 6-2, 5-7, (12-10)