MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The LSU men’s tennis team fell to Memphis, 6-1, to open the season Sunday at the Racquet Club of Memphis.
With the loss, the Tigers fell to 0-1 on the season, while Memphis improved to 2-0.
Coach Brown on the First Match of the Season
“Being unable to get the doubles point after having served for it put us a little behind as we moved to singles,” head coach Jeff Brown said. “However, we have a lot to take away from these matches as they were very close on both the singles and the doubles courts.”
“We have to take a look at the smallest details to improve our game and look forward to getting back out to practice on Tuesday in order to build off of this prior to competing in the ITA Kick Off next week.”
Doubles Point
Memphis took the doubles point to get off to an early 1-0 lead. Kai Lemke and Andrew Watson defeated Jordan Daigle and Justin Butsch, 6-3, on court one. Julian Saborio and Gabor Csonka put together a 6-4 win against Ryan Peniston and Felix Rauch. On court three, Rafael Wagner and Eric Samuelsson got off to an early 2-1 lead. The freshman duo eventually fell in the close match, 5-7, to Matt Story and Jan Pallares.
Singles Results
Senior Justin Butsch fell in straight sets, 3-6, 2-6, to No. 111 Andrew Watson on the second court to give Memphis the 2-0 lead against LSU.
Felix Rauch defeated freshman Agie Moreno in straight sets on the sixth court. The freshman dropped the contest, 2-6, 3-6, as Memphis took the 3-0 lead.
On court one, Jordan Daigle sprinted off to an early 2-0 lead against 35th-ranked Ryan Peniston. Daigle took the first set 6-2. The senior followed with a 7-5 victory and did not surrender the lead throughout either set to give LSU its first point of the day to make it 3-1 Memphis.
With the win against No. 35 Peniston, Daigle has defeated eight ranked opponents during his three seasons at LSU.
Freshman Rafael Wagner dropped both sets on court five to Jan Pallares, 0-6, 6-7(4), to clinch the match for Memphis.
After taking the first set against Kai Lemke, 6-4, Nikola Samardzic had trouble on court three in the second and third sets and fell 4-6 in consecutive sets as Lemke secured the match to give Memphis the 5-1 advantage.
Gabor Csonka forced the match against Chris Patzanovsky to a third set after falling 6-7(4) in the first and taking the second set 6-2. He fell 1-0(8) in the third set to wrap up the day.
Next Up
The Tigers will travel to Gainesville, Florida, for ITA Kick-Off Weekend. They will face the University of South Florida on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 10 a.m. CT at the Ring Tennis Complex. On Sunday, Jan. 29, LSU will take on Florida or UNC Wilmington at a time to be announced.
LSU will open its home slate on Friday, Feb. 3 at 5 p.m. against Santa Clara at the LSU Tennis Complex.
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 at www.facebook.com/lsutennis.
Jan. 22 at Memphis, Tenn. (The Racquet Club of Memphis)
Singles
1. Jordan Daigle (LSU) def. #35 Ryan Peniston (Memphis), 6-2, 7-5
2. #111 Andrew Watson (Memphis) def. Justin Butsch (LSU), 3-6, 2-6
3. Kai Lemke (Memphis) def. Nikola Samardzic (LSU), 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
4. Chris Patzanovsky (Memphis) def. Gabor Csonka, 7-6(4), 2-6, 1-0(8)
5. Jan Pallares (Memphis) def. Rafael Wagner (LSU), 6-0, 7-6(4)
6. Felix Rauch (Memphis) def. Agie Moreno (LSU), 6-2, 6-3
Doubles
1. Kai Lemke/Andrew Watson (Memphis) def. Jordan Daigle/Justin Butsch (LSU), 6-3
2. Julian Saborio/Gabor Csonka (LSU) def. Ryan Penison/Felix Rauch (Memphis), 6-4
3. Matt Story/Jan Pallares (Memphis) def. Rafael Wagner/Eric Samuelsson(LSU), 7-5
Order of Finish:
Singles: 2,6,1,5,3,4
Doubles: 1,2,3