BATON ROUGE — The LSU men’s tennis team opens the 2006-07 season with high expectations as eight of their nine players are upperclassmen.
With three seniors and five juniors, head coach Jeff Brown believes this group of seasoned veterans is a force to be reckoned with.
“There is no substitute for experience,” Brown said. “When freshmen come in it takes some time for them to understand the level of intensity that your opponent is coming at you with and how important it is to close out matches. Having so much experience our guys know that everything is important. They know what it takes to succeed.”
The Tiger’s biggest weapon is senior Ken Skupski. The two-time ITA All-American has been a dominant force in the SEC since he arrived in Baton Rouge.
Skupski was the first Tiger to win the SEC Coaches Indoor Championship, and the first player in the history of the tournament to win back-to-back titles. The Liverpool, England, native picked up his first NCAA tournament singles victory last spring, but his season was cut short as a nagging back injury forced him to retire from the competition.
Last spring was the curtain call for one of the Tiger’s most successful doubles teams in school history as Skupski’s partner Mark Growcott finished his eligibility. But, Skupski looks to add to an already impressive r?sum? as he sets himself up for the pro tour after he graduates in the spring.
“He is looking forward to using this year to become more physically fit and wants to stay focused to, where when he steps on the pro tour, he can continue to have success,” Brown explained.
Joining Skupski with one year of eligibility remaining are fellow seniors Danny Bryan and Eric DeRoche.
Bryan was team captain last year and shined in his leadership role as he received second team All-SEC honors. The New Orleans native excelled on the doubles court as he and partner Colt Gaston notched a team high 26 victories. The Tiger tandem will enter the season as the team’s No. 1 doubles team.
“Danny was a vital part of our success last year,” Brown commented. “He and Colt did a great job with doubles and I expect them to do even bigger and better things this year.”
DeRoche is known for his intensity and work ethic. The former walk-on is ready to make a name for himself this season as the coaching staff tries to utilize him and maximize his potential in singles and doubles.
Leading the pack of juniors is Gaston. The left hander has an intimidating presence on the court as he stands at a towering 6 feet 5 inches. The Georgia native was one of the team’s most consistent contributors last season, notching 16 singles victories on his way to a second team All-SEC honors. Gaston’s success in singles, and in doubles with Bryan, will be one of the key ingredients to the Tigers’ success this season.
“Colt really stepped up last year and had several big wins for us in singles,” Brown said. “He and Danny (Bryan) have been great in doubles and haven’t lost many matches. I know this duo is determined to be an All-American team this season.”
Junior Kevin Dessauer has not only performed on the court but in the classroom as well. The two-time ITA Scholar-Athlete has maintained a 4.0 grade point average while still competing at a high level in tennis.
The only newcomer for the Tigers is Colorado transfer Jan Zelezny. Brown believes Zelezny will make an immediate impact for LSU after he saw him compete last season.
“We played against him while we were at Colorado last year and liked his skills,” Brown commented. “He has great speed which allows him to get more balls and makes it difficult for his opponents to finish points against him.”
Rounding out the junior class is Martel Campbell and Jonathan Tragardh. Brown believes these two California natives will be part of a heavy competition to move up in the lineup.
“Besides Ken I believe every position is up for grabs,” Brown said. “We have such a talented group of veterans that have raised their level of play that it will be a heated competition heading into the regular season.”
James Cluskey, the teams’ only underclassman, performed well enough last year that Brown decided to make him Skupski’s new doubles partner. The duo picked up three wins last year as a doubles team.
TOUGH ROAD AHEAD
The Tigers will be participating in five tournaments in the fall to help prepare for the regular season. Brown said his team understands the importance of the fall tournaments is not only to gain experience for the regular season but for rankings as well.
“Our guys realize doing well in the tournaments will push us in the rankings,” he said. “We have to make a statement early to help us enter the spring on a good note.”
The regular season will be challenging for LSU as it faces 14 teams that participated in the NCAA tournament last season.
“We look forward to having such a competitive schedule because we never have to worry about the guys getting pumped up for a match,” Brown said. “We play against some out of conference teams that we have had great matches with in the past, including Texas A&M, Ohio State and TCU.”
The Tigers also have an extended home season, as they will host the SEC tournament.
“We are very excited about the SEC Championships being held on our courts,” Brown said. “We only hope to put ourselves in position to have the best draw possible. We are excited especially for our fans that have been great to us over the years. Having the SEC Championships here and the SEC Indoor Championships in New Orleans will allow our fans to see us play close to home.”
LSU will take a break from its fall season to give back to the community. On Oct. 29, the Tigers will host “Duel Under the Oaks,” an event that will help raise money for New Orleans Health Sciences.
The main attraction will be an exhibition tennis match between tennis legend Pete Sampras and former professional tennis star Todd Martin. Before the exhibition there will be a children’s clinic run by LSU’s coaching staff and players at W.T. Robinson Tennis Stadium.
After the clinic the festivities will head to the Pete Maravich Assembly Center for the tennis exhibitions. Two members from the men’s team will face each other followed by two members from the women’s team going head-to-head. The finale will be the Sampras vs. Martin showdown.
“Bringing two great ambassadors of the game of tennis to Baton Rouge is really something special,” Brown commented. “It gives everyone a chance to see some great tennis in their own backyard and it’s all for a good cause.”