BATON ROUGE – The LSU men’s tennis team celebrated the close of the regular season with the “LSU Tennis Ball” on April 30 as a fundraising event for the team in Tiger Den Suites.
Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Joe Alleva and wife Annie Alleva were the Honorary Chairpersons for the event which lasted from 7-10 p.m. and included the players’ year-end awards.
Mark Bowtell received Most Improved after the County Wicklow, Ireland, native climbed the lineup from court No. 6 to finish the season at the No. 2 position. Overall, the sophomore holds a team-best dual-season record at 12-8 with nine straight-set victories.
David Roberts received the team’s Top-Tiger Award for outstanding community service, academics and athletics. Roberts earned a spot on the SEC Community Service Team in honor of his community outreach efforts in 2010. The Lafayette, La., native is a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and spearheaded several community service endeavors for not only the men’s tennis team, but all sports to participate in such as the CHAMPS Halloween BOOzar, Christmas with the Tigers, Read Across America and visits to Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital.
Neal Skupski earned the MVP award after the sophomore etched a 7-11 record at top of the lineup with an overall nine victories against nationally-ranked opponents. Skupski has been as highly ranked as No. 26 in ITA preseason polls where he also debuted at No. 18 with Sebastian Carlsson in doubles. The duo etched a 5-2 record at No. 1 doubles and owns a pair of wins against the nation’s top tandems.
Carlsson and Cody Loup both earned the Team Captain Award for 2009-10. Carlsson, a junior from Uppsala, Sweden, has proven pivotal under pressure numerous times for the Tigers after earning five three-set victories during the dual season. A leader on the court and in the classroom, Carlsson is a solid asset and leader for LSU.
Loup cracked the starting lineup in 2010, but the junior from Baton Rouge has been a long-time vocal leader for the team. Loup made his debut against Ole Miss in the 2009 NCAA Second Round and has since been an integral part of the team, settling in at No. 6 mid-season.
Since the close of the SEC Tournament, the Tigers have been eagerly awaiting their fate in the NCAA Tournament. The wait will be over when ESPNews announces the 64-team draw on Tuesday 4-5 p.m. CT.