CORAL GABLES, Fla. — The LSU men’s tennis team is set to open the NCAA Tournament against Minnesota on Saturday at 8 a.m. (CST) at the University of Miami’s Neil Schiff Tennis Center.
The Tigers (15-9, 7-4 SEC) were ranked 22nd in the final ITA poll of the regular season and enter their 11th consecutive NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 seed in the Miami Regional.
LSU was upset by Mississippi State in the opening round of the SEC Tournament, extending the team’s losing streak to three matches. The Gophers fell in their last match as well, losing to Penn State in the quarterfinals of the Big 10 Tournament.
After three weeks of practicing LSU head coach Jeff Brown feels his team is ready to get back on a winning track.
“It’s almost like the first game of the year again,” said LSU head coach Jeff Brown. “We’ve been practicing against each other for so long that we’re just ready to get out there and face another team. Minnesota is that team and we’re ready to do it.”
The Tigers own a 5-2 series lead over Minnesota, but the two schools have not met since 1987.
Saturday’s match should feature superb play on the No. 1 singles court, where LSU’s 20th-ranked Ken Skupski is slated to face No. 59-ranked D. J. Geatz of Minnesota.
LSU’s success this season has come from strong doubles play. LSU’s court one duo of Skupski and Mark Growcott were recently selected to play in their second straight NCAA Doubles Championship and the No. 2 pair of Danny Bryan and Colt Gaston posted an 8-1 record in SEC play.
If LSU defeats Minnesota they will advance to play Sunday in the regional final against the winner of Miami and Manhattan. The winner of the regional will travel to the NCAA Championships in Palo Alto, Calif.
NCAA Men’s Tennis Tournament Pairings/Results
All times listed local
University of Texas A&M ? College Station, Texas
Live Scoring
Notre Dame vs. Brown, 2 p.m.
Texas A&M vs. Texas-Arlington, 5 p.m.
University of Louisville – Louisville, Ky.
Live Scoring
Illinois vs. Western Illinois, 10 a.m.
Louisville vs. SMU, 1 p.m.
May 13, 2006
University of Georgia – Athens, Ga.
Live Scoring
Georgia Tech vs. Alabama, Noon
Georgia vs. Furman, 3 p.m.
University of Texas A&M ? College Station, Texas
Live Scoring
Final, 4 p.m.
University of Virginia – Charlottesville, Va.
Live Scoring
Virginia vs. Army, 10 a.m.
Wake Forest vs. Kentucky, 1 p.m.
University of Miami – Coral Gables, Fla.
Live Scoring
LSU vs. Minnesota, 9 a.m.
Miami vs. Manhattan, Noon
Duke University – Durham, N.C.
Live Scoring
Duke vs. Winthrop, 10 a.m.
Boise State vs. N.C. State, 1 p.m.
Stanford University ? Stanford, Calif.
Live Scoring
California vs. UC-Santa Barbara, 9 a.m.
Stanford vs. Quinnipiac, Noon
Baylor University ? Waco, Texas
Live Scoring
Baylor vs. Texas Southern, 11 a.m.
MTSU vs. Tulsa, 2 p.m.
Virginia Commonwealth University – Richmond, Va.
Live Scoring
VCU vs. Richmond, 9 a.m.
Washington vs. Penn State, Noon
Pepperdine University – Malibu, Calif.
Live Scoring
Pepperdine vs. Montana State, 9 a.m.
TCU vs. San Diego, Noon
Oklahoma State University – Stillwater, Okla.
Live Scoring
Florida vs. Western Michigan, 11 a.m.
Oklahoma St. vs. Drake, 2 p.m.
University of Louisville – Louisville, Ky.
Live Scoring
Final, Noon
University of California, Los Angeles – Los Angeles, Calif.
Live Scoring
Colorado vs. Arizona, 10 a.m.
UCLA vs. Stony Brook, 1 p.m.
University of Texas at Austin – Austin, Texas
Live Scoring
Texas vs. Tennessee Tech, Noon
Rice vs. UL-Lafayette, 3 p.m.
University of Mississippi – University, Miss.
Live Scoring
Mississippi vs. Belmont, 11 a.m.
Florida State vs. Auburn, 2 p.m.
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill – Chapel Hill, N.C.
Live Scoring
North Carolina vs. South Carolina St., 9 a.m.
Clemson vs. South Carolina, Noon
May 14, 2006
University of Georgia – Athens, Ga.
Final, 2 p.m.
University of Virginia – Charlottesville, Va.
Final, Noon
University of Miami – Coral Gables, Fla.
Final, Noon
Duke University – Durham, N.C.
Final, 2 p.m.
Stanford University ? Stanford, Calif.
Final, 11 a.m.
Baylor University ? Waco, Texas
Final, 2 p.m.
Virginia Commonwealth University – Richmond, Va.
Final, Noon
Pepperdine University – Malibu, Calif.
Final, 1 p.m.
Oklahoma State University – Stillwater, Okla.
Final, 2 p.m.
University of California, Los Angeles – Los Angeles, Calif.
Final, 1 p.m.
University of Texas at Austin – Austin, Texas
Final, 1 p.m.
University of Mississippi – University, Miss.
Final, 1 p.m.
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill – Chapel Hill, N.C.
Final, 1 p.m.