CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The 18th-ranked LSU men’s tennis team won a convincing doubles point but was unable to finish strong in singles as No. 15 Illinois ended the Tigers season with a 4-2 victory in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at the Atkins Tennis Center.
The Tigers (15-9) claimed convincing wins on the top two courts in doubles but freshman Sebastian Carlsson was the only Tiger able to pick up a win in singles. LSU’s all-time NCAA Tournament record now stands at 27-25.
The Illini (20-8) will go on to the NCAA Round of 16 at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center in Tulsa, Okla., May 16-20. It was the first time this season that the Illini won a match without the doubles point.
The series between the two teams is tied at 5-all.
“We set us up well with an outstanding doubles performance,” LSU head coach Jeff Brown said. “The large crowd didn’t bother us but they got off to a quick start in singles on too many courts. We were able to win on one court but we had too many straight-sets losses. It was a pretty valiant effort. I couldn’t ask for much more outside of getting the win.”
LSU’s senior duo of Kevin Dessauer and Colt Gaston gave the Tigers the early advantage in doubles. The Tiger tandem was up 5-4 when it shut the Illini pair down by claiming the next three games to win by an 8-4 score. It is the second victory against a ranked opponent for the LSU pair.
Seconds later, LSU’s top pair of juniors James Cluskey and Michael Venus clinched the doubles point.
The LSU duo jumped out to a 3-0 lead before the Illinois pair of Billy Heiser and Ryan Rowe, who is ranked No. 11 in the country, began to climb back into the match by trimming LSU’s advantage to 5-3. It would be the closest the Illini would get as the Tigers captured the next three games to get the 8-3 victory. It is the fifth victory Cluskey and Venus have claimed over a ranked opponent and the third against a top-20 team.
Freshman Sebastian Carlsson extended LSU’s lead to 2-0 by handily defeating Waylon Chin in straight sets, 6-1, 6-3. The win is Carlsson’s seventh straight and his 27th of the season which is the most by a freshman while Brown has been head coach.
Besides Carlsson, Venus was the only Tiger to win his first set as the hotly-contested match looked to go down to the wire.
The Illini tied the score at 2-all by posting victories on courts five and three.
The Illini took its first lead of the match as senior Jan Zelezny fell in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, to Gonzales on court two.
The match would be decided on courts one and four.
Gaston rallied from a first-set deficit to take the second set, 6-3, against Heiser on court four. Heiser jumped out to a 4-0 advantage in the third set before Gaston was able to get two games to put Heiser’s lead at 4-2. Gaston was unable to get another game as Hesier won the next games to give Illinois the victory.
Saturday’s match marks the end of LSU’s three seniors, Dessauer, Gaston and Zelezny, career as Tigers.
Dessauer and Gaston joined the Tigers in the 2003-04 season.
Dessauer, who was recently named the regional winner for the ITA Arthur Ashe Award, is one of the most academically acclaimed student-athletes in LSU history. The kinesiology major has been named an ITA Scholar-Athlete the past three seasons. He is the only two-time SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year. He earned First-Team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American honors during his junior season. The LSU Male Scholar-Athlete will graduate next Friday with a perfect 4.0 GPA.
On the court, Dessauer has earned second-team All-SEC honors the past two seasons. He has compiled a 63-37 record in singles and 48-32 record in doubles during his time as a Tiger. His success on and off the court propelled the coaching staff to name him team captain this year.
Gaston earned ITA Doubles All-American honors last season after he and current student assistant coach Danny Bryan put on one the best doubles campaigns in LSU history that was capped off with an appearance in the NCAA Doubles Quarterfinals. Bryan and Gaston won the 2007 SEC Indoors Doubles Championship in New Orleans. The Tiger tandem finished the season ranked No. 6 in the country. Gaston earned second-team All-SEC honors during his sophomore year. Last season, he was named to the SEC Honor Roll and earned Director Cup honors. He finishes his tenure as a Tiger with a 59-54 record in singles and 97-37 record in doubles.
Zelezny joined the Tigers at the beginning of the 2006-07 season after transferring from Colorado. The Czech Republic native made his presence known in his first year as a Tiger as he was named the 2007 Louisiana Newcomer of The Year and received first-team All-Louisiana honors. He compiled a team-best 8-3 conference record last season. The ITA Scholar-Athlete has already received a degree in business finance and is currently getting his masters in accounting Zelezny finishes his LSU career with a 41-29 record in singles and 34-26 mark in doubles.
“All three seniors reached All-American status during their time here,” Brown commented. “They have been great teammates and have had great academic success. They have done so much for this program as student-athletes. We are going to continue to represent them as alumni and wish them well.”
#15 Illinois 4 def. #18 LSU 2
May 10, 2008 at Champaign,Ill.
Arkins Tennis Center
Singles
1. #21 Ryan Rowe (ILL) vs. #26 Michael Venus (LSU) 5-7, 7-5, unfinished
2. #42 Ruben Gonzales (ILL) def. #106 Jan Zelezny (LSU) 6-4, 6-4
3. Marc Spicijaric (ILL) def. Kevin Dessauer (LSU) 6-3, 6-3
4. Billy Heiser (ILL) def. Colt Gaston (LSU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
5. Roy Kalmanovich (ILL) def. Julien Gauthier (LSU) 6-3, 6-2
6. Sebastian Carlsson (LSU) def. Waylon Chin (ILL) 6-1, 6-3
Doubles
1. #16 James Cluskey/Michael Venus (LSU) def. #11 Billy Heiser/Ryan Rowe (ILL) 8-3
2. Kevin Dessauer/Colt Gaston (LSU) def. #42 Ruben Gonzales/Marc Spicijaric (ILL) 8-4
3. Brandon Davis/Waylon Chin (ILL) vs. Sebastian Carlsson/Jan Zelezny (LSU) 6-6, unfinished
Match Notes:
LSU 15-9; National ranking #18
Illinois 20-8; National ranking #15
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (3,5,2,4)
Men's Tennis Falls in NCAA Second Round, 4-2