HOUSTON — The LSU men’s tennis team overcame both a five-hour rain delay and the competition Saturday night at the Courtyard by Marriot/Rice Invitational, as four singles players and two doubles teams advanced to their bracket finals.
“It rained all morning, but I don’t think it altered our guys focus at all,” said LSU head coach Jeff Brown. “We have had a great attitude these first two days and our guys are competing at a really high level.”
In doubles, Bryan and Dessauer had a tough battle with Rice’s Jason Mok and Chistoph M?ller, but finished strong as they took the match 9-8.
Jan Zelezny and James Cluskey could not overcome a early deficit as they fell to Tulsa’s Diego Camacho and Ross Cunningham, 8-2.
The Tiger tandem of Martel Campbell and Eric DeRoche continued their strong play as they disposed of Prarie View A&M’s Kudzai Chiridza and Andy Narido, 8-5.
In singles play, Bryan started strong taking the first set against Tulsa’s Will Gray, 6-4. Gray evened the match by taking the second set, 3-6, but Bryan pulled away winning the tie breaker, 11-9.
Zelezny continued to struggle as he fell to Rice’s M?ller, 6-2, 7-5.
In the B bracket, Cluskey and Dessauer are set to face one another tomorrow as they both took two-set victories, 7-5, 7-5 and 6-4, 6-3, respectively.
The Tigers spilt their matches in the C bracket. Campbell knocked off Tulsa’s Olof Sjolund, 6-2, 6-1, and DeRochee fell to Tulsa’s Lucques Maasdorp, 6-4,1-6, 10-6.
“Having a number of guys playing on the last day is very exciting,” Brown commented. “No matter what tournament you are in, getting to the finals gives you great experience on how to handle pressure and understanding the importance of always finishing strong.”
Play continues tomorrow with doubles final starting at 9 a.m. and singles finals beginning at 11 a.m. Each of the Tigers in Houston will play again on Sunday.
Courtyard by Marriott/Rice Invitational
Day Two Results
Flight A Doubles
Bryan/Dessauer (LSU) def. Mok/M?ller (Rice), 9-8
Camacho/Cunningham (Tulsa) def. Zelezny/Cluskey (LSU), 8-2
Flight B Doubles
DeRoche/Campbell (LSU) def. Narido/Chiridza (Prairie View A&M), 8-5
Flight A Singles
Chistoph M?ller (Rice) def. Jan Zelezny (LSU), 6-2, 7-5
Danny Bryan def.Will Gray (Tulsa), 6-4, 3-6, 11-9
Flight B Singles
James Cluskey (LSU) def. Filip Zivojinovic (Rice), 7-5, 7-5
Kevin Dessauer (LSU) def. Chris Hooshyer (SMU), 6-4, 6-3
Flight C Singles
Martel Campbell (LSU) def. Olof Sjolund (Tulsa), 6-2, 6-1
Lucques Maasdorp (Tulsa) def. Eric DeRoche (LSU), 6-4, 1-6, 10-6