NEW ORLEANS — The LSU men’s tennis team had four singles players and two doubles teams advance on the first day of the SEC Coaches Indoor Championships at Rivercenter Racquet and Health Club.
Defending singles champion Ken Skupski kept his chance of a third-straight title alive as he defeated Florida’s Jordan Dolberg, 6-4, 6-2. The two-time All-American will go on to face No. 34 ranked Kaden Hensel of Tennessee.
“The guys that did win, obviously played well. I still feel the guys that didn’t win played strong and got some good experience,” LSU head coach Jeff Brown said. “I am glad we got to compete and gained some experience against some of the best competition in the SEC.”
LSU’s two New Orleans natives, Danny Bryan and Kevin Dessauer, also advanced in the “A” draw. Bryan breezed past Tennessee’s Ben Rogers, 6-1, 6-2. The win is Bryan’s team-high 12th of the season and is his fifth straight. Dessauer also won in straight sets as he knocked off Chris Rea of Ole Miss, 6-2, 6-3. Both Bryan and Dessauer will play at 9 a.m. on Saturday in the round of 16.
Colt Gaston gave a hard fought match in his first outing of the season. The left-hander split his first two sets with No. 31 ranked Phillipe Frayssinoux of Tennessee. However, Gatson could not outlast Frayssinoux as he lost in the final set by a 6-2 count.
Jan Zelezny had a heated battle with No. 24 ranked Bobby Cameron of Tennessee, but fell in the third set.
Sophomore James Cluskey had a tough outing against Jakob Klaeson of Ole Miss, falling in straight sets.
LSU split its two singles matches in the opening round of the “B” draw. Eric DeRoche had an impressive outing in his match as he handily defeated Tennessee’s Johnny Thornton, 7-5, 6-1. The River Ridge, La. native will move on to face Georgia’s Josh Varela in the quarterfinals on Saturday. The win improves DeRoche’s record to 5-4 on the season. Junior Martel Campbell fell against Tennessee’s Chris Racz, 6-3, 7-5.
Seventh seeded Ivan Bjelica of Ole Miss was the only seeded player to lose in the first round.
In doubles, LSU’s top two duos of Ken Skupski and James Cluskey, and Danny Bryan and Colt Gaston shined in their matches as both duos knocked off a team from Ole Miss to advance the quarterfinals.
Kevin Dessauer and Jan Zelezny played solid in only their second time playing as a team as they were victorious against Florida’s Shaun Young and Billy Bulligan in the Round of 32. The Tiger tandem continued its strong play in the Round of 16, but its shot at an upset over the No. 6 seed of Georgia’s Travis Helgeson and Matic Omerzel fell short as the LSU lost in a tiebreaker, 9-8 (3).
Play resumes Saturday at 9 a.m.
SEC Coaches Indoor Championships
Friday, January 19, 2006
Singles “A” Draw
Round of 32
(1) No. 9 Ken Skupski (LSU) def. Jordan Dolberg (UF), 6-4, 6-3
No. 68 Danny Bryan (LSU) def. Ben Rogers (UT), 6-1, 6-2
Kevin Dessauer (LSU) def. Chris Rea (UM), 6-2, 6-3
No. 31 Phillipe Frayssinoux (MSU) def. Colt Gaston (LSU), 6-7 (5), 7-5, 6-2
(6) No. 24 Bobby Cameron (UT) def. Jan Zelezny (LSU), 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
Jakob Klaeson (UM) def. James Cluskey (LSU), 6-2, 6-2
Singles “B” Draw
Round of 16
Eric DeRoche (LSU) def. Johnny Thornton (UT) 7-5, 6-1
Chris Racz (UT) def. Martel Campbell (LSU), 6-3, 7-5
Doubles
Round of 32
(1) No. 3 Ken Skupski/James Cluskey (LSU) received a bye
(5) Danny Bryan/Colt Gaston (LSU) received a bye
Kevin Dessauer/Jan Zelezny (LSU) vs. Shaun Young/Billy Mulligan (UF), 8-5
Jamie Hunt/ Nate Schnugg (UGA) def. Eric DeRoche/Martel Campbell (LSU), 8-1
Round of 16
(1) No.3 Ken Skupski/James Cluskey (LSU) def. Mattias Wellermann/Robbye Poole (UM), 8-5
(5) Danny Bryan/Colt Gaston (LSU) def. Jonas Berg/ Kalle Norberg (UM), 8-5
(6) Travis Helgeson/Matic Omerzel (UGA) def. Kevin Dessauer/Jan Zelezny (LSU), 9-8
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Schedule
Singles “A” Draw
Round of 16
(1) No. 9 Ken Skupski (LSU) vs. No.35 Kaden Hensel (UT), 10 a.m.
Kevin Dessauer (LSU) vs. (4) No. 22 Travis Helgeson (UGA), 9 a.m.
No. 68 Danny Bryan (LSU) vs. (8) No. 40 Erling Tveit (UM), 9 a.m.
Singles “B” Draw
Quarterfinals
Eric DeRoche (LSU) vs. Josh Varela (UGA), 11 a.m.
Doubles Quarterfinals
(1) No. 3 Ken Skupski/James Cluskey vs. Gonzales/Vitullu (UGA), 3 p.m.
(5) Danny Bryan/Colt Gaston vs. (4) No. 28 Necajevs/Kuznetsov (MSU), 3 p.m.