BATON ROUGE — LSU turned a close match with rival Tulane on Wednesday into a huge 6-1 victory over the 18th-ranked Green Wave (18-5).
Freshman Colt Gaston clinched the match for the Tigers with a three-set win over Jonah Kane-West on court six.
“Winning at this time of year, in late season play the possibility of moving up in the rankings is incredibly valuable,” said LSU head coach Jeff Brown.
The fourth consecutive win for 15th-ranked LSU (17-7, 4-6 SEC) could become even bigger for with the postseason just around the corner. The top-16 teams are selected to host the first two rounds NCAA tournaments, and the win temporarily solidified their place among that group.
“It was a big win for all the national implications, but to beat Tulane in this significant rivalry was important to our team especially and to our seniors,” Brown said.
The Tigers found themselves in a fierce battle for the doubles point for the first time in several matches. All courts were deadlocked throughout the point.
LSU’s Jason Hazley and Peter Richman finally broke Kane-West and David Goulet at match point to win, 9-7 on court three.
On court two, LSU’s 39th-ranked pair of Danny Bryan and Colt Gaston did the same thing to Ted Angelinos and Jacobo Hernandez to clinch the point for LSU.
The match on court three between LSU’s 7th-ranked Ken Skupski and Mark Growcott and Tulane’s Dmitry Koch and Alberto Sottocorno went to a tiebreaker. The Tulane duo won, 9-8, snapping a six match win streak for Skupski and Growcott.
It was the ninth consecutive doubles-point for LSU.
Hazley dominated Angelinos on court three, 6-2, 6-1, bringing the Tigers to a 2-0 match lead.
Despite the early lead, the match was still questionable. Four Tigers lost their first sets. Gaston won his first but lost the second.
Koch struck back for the Green Wave, beating Growcott on court one, 6-4, 6-4. Skupski widened the lead again with a three-set win on court two over Goulet.
Gaston broke Kane-West’s serve in a long match point to get the 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 win and take pressure off the remaining two courts.
Richman went on to win his match on court four, as did Bryan on court five.
“The biggest thing I saw tonight was a complete team effort,” Brown said. “It looks like we’re coming together at this time of year and that’s exciting.”
LSU plays its last regular season match at home Saturday at 1 p.m. against Arkansas. Seniors Hazley and Richman will be recognized after the doubles point.
#15 LSU 6, #18 Tulane 1
Singles competition:
1. Dmitry Koch (TUL) def. #61 Mark Growcott (LSU) 6-4, 6-4
2. #20 Ken Skupski (LSU) def. David Goulet (TUL) 4-6, 6-0, 6-3
3. Jason Hazley (LSU) def. Ted Angelinos (TUL) 6-2, 6-1
4. Peter Richman (LSU) def. Jacobo Hernandez (TUL) 4-6, 6-1, 6-4
5. Danny Bryan (LSU) def. Alberto Sottocorno (TUL) 6-7, 6-3, 6-1
6. Colt Gaston (LSU) def. Jonah Kane West (TUL) 6-2, 5-7, 6-4
Doubles competition:
1. #57 Dmitry Koch/Alberto Sottocorno (TUL) def. #7 Mark Growcott/Ken Skupski (LSU) 9-8 (7-5)
2. #39 Colt Gaston/Danny Bryan (LSU) def. Ted Angelinos/Jacobo Hernandez (TUL) 8-6
3. Jason Hazley/Peter Richman (LSU) def. Jonah Kane West/David Goulet (TUL) 9-7
Match Notes:
Tulane 18-5; National ranking #18
LSU 17-7, 4-6 SEC; National ranking #15
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (3,1,2,6,4,5)
Clinchers: Doubles (2), Singles (6)
Official: Richie Weaver