KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The LSU men’s tennis team will complete a long stretch of road matches Sunday when they take on No. 21-ranked Tennessee (7-2, 3-0 SEC) at noon.
While the Vols have enjoyed early success in Southeastern Conference matchups, the No. 17 Tigers (10-4, 0-3 SEC) are still in search of their first league win. The Tennessee match marks the end of an eight-match road span for LSU.
“We know we’re close to where we can turn things around now, but we’re still looking for a total team performance,” said LSU head coach Jeff Brown. “We’re expecting that from the guys.”
The Tigers lost Friday to No. 6 Georgia to begin their weekend. It was their third match in three weeks against a top-10 team on the road.
“We continue to make improvements,” Brown said. “I think the team has rededicated themselves to the season, so I’m excited to see if we get some results.”
Tennessee is led by 43rd-ranked Mark Dietrich at the number one singles position. They also feature the No. 8-ranked doubles team of Ockie Oosthuizen and Ben Rogers at No. 1 doubles.
“They’re as good as (top-10 teams) Georgia and Florida, really,” Brown said. “But it’s not so much about them. When we’ve played our best we’ve won, so it’s really about us.”
The top of LSU’s lineup will be looking to return to winning form. Mark Growcott and Ken Skupski, ranked sixth in doubles, will have to rebound from their first SEC loss on Friday. Both have shared time at No. 1 and 2 singles and want to bounce back from close losses Friday.
Seniors Jason Hazley and Peter Richman had LSU’s only singles wins Friday.
LSU beat Tennessee last season, 4-3, at home.