COLLEGE STATION, Texas – After dropping a closely-contested doubles point, which came down to a tiebreaker on court three, the No. 25 LSU men’s tennis team fell to No. 6 Texas A&M by a score of 4-0 at the 2015 SEC Men’s Tennis Tournament in College Station, Texas.
The power of the second-seeded Texas A&M (19-4, 11-1 SEC) singles lineup, which features four players ranked in the top 100, proved too much for LSU (17-8, 6-6 SEC) who failed to score a point against the Aggies for the second time this season.
“We felt we should have sneaked that doubles point out,” said head coach Jeff Brown. “Being down 1-0 made it a little too tough for some of our guys. That’s how it goes sometimes and we need to be better at staying in matches at the end. We will work on that.”
Despite the loss, the Tigers have accumulated seventeen wins for the first time since 2007, when they went 18-7 and finished the season ranked No. 15.
Coach Brown believes his team’s ability to limit losses outside of the top 20 as well as the close matches against No. 5 Georgia, No. 13 Ole Miss, and No. 20 Mississippi State suggests the possibility of an even higher level of play from his team.
“I feel these guys have an another level,” Brown said. “We have done a good job avoiding losses outside of the top 20 [other than South Carolina] and we just missed out on a few big wins. We have done a great job and were a little unlucky. That is how it goes.”
LSU’s top-25 wins include victories over No. 18 San Diego and No. 22 Vanderbilt this season.
The Tigers will now wait to hear the announcement of their first NCAA Tournament opponent on April 28. The NCAA Championships will open on Friday, May 8.
“We will use the break to make subtle technique adjustments,” Brown said of how the team plans to use the extended time off. “It is a good chance to adjust minor things that you have no time for during the season. We will need to get fitter as the weather gets hotter and the team is excited to focus on practicing.”
For up-to-date information and behind-the-scenes access on the Tigers, fans can follow the LSU men’s tennis team on Twitter and Instagram at @lsutennis and on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/lsutennis.
#6 Texas A&M 4, #25 LSU 0
Singles competition
1. #61 Jeremy Efferding (TAMU) vs. #74 Jordan Daigle (LSU) 4-6, 4-2, unfinished
2. #69 Shane Vinsant (TAMU) vs. Chris Simpson (LSU) 2-6, 4-4, unfinished
3. Arthur Rinderknech (TAMU) vs. Boris Arias (LSU) 6-3, 4-4, unfinished
4. #55 Harrison Adams (TAMU) def. Andrew Korinek (LSU) 6-4, 6-1
5. #93 AJ Catanzariti (TAMU) def. Justin Butsch (LSU) 6-0, 6-2
6. Jordi Arconada (TAMU) def. Simon Freund (LSU) 6-4, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. #11 Harrison Adams/Shane Vinsant (TAMU) def. #20 Jordan Daigle/Boris Arias (LSU) 6-1
2. Chris Simpson/Justin Butsch (LSU) def. #46 Jeremy Efferding/Jordan Szabo (TAMU) 6-2
3. Arthur Rinderknech/AJ Catanzariti (TAMU) def. Tam Trinh/Simon Freund (LSU) 7-5
Match Notes:
LSU 17-8; National ranking #25
Texas A&M 19-4; National ranking #6
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (5,4,6)
SEC Quarterfinals
T-2:05