BATON ROUGE- The LSU men’s tennis team only has four days until it opens its season with matches at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. against Arkansas Pine-Bluff on Jan. 19. Here is the first part of the 2018 team introduction.
Get to Know the Freshman- Stewart Block
Block enters his freshman campaign at LSU with massive potential. He is a 6-4 all-court player who has a huge serve and forehand.
The freshman competed in two of the Tigers’ three fall tournaments. He won his first career match at the Commodore Scramble against Lousiville’s Fredrik Moe with a straight-set, 6-1, 7-6(0) feat.
His second win was on his home court at the LSU Tennis Complex in the ITA Southern Regional where he defeated Troy’s Jorge Poyatos in the first round of the qualifying singles, 3-6, 6-1, 6-1.
Out of high school, Block was one of the top players in the state of Florida where he was coached by Heath Turpin and Julian Alonso.
Brandi’s Corner
“Stewart needs to gain experience,” co-head coach Andy Brandi said. “He has a big game with a lot of weapons and will mature into a great college player.”
Lagniappe
The Australian Open began Monday, and there are two former Tigers in the draw—Michael Venus and Neal Skupski.
No. 15 Venus and his partner No. 25 Raven Klaasen are the No. 8 seed and will compete against No. 69 Scott Lipsky of the United States and Spain’s No. 77 David Marrero.
Neal Skupski is currently ranked No. 67 in the world on the doubles court. The United Kingdom right-hander will compete with No. 62 Adil Shamasdin of Canada. The duo will square off against No. 37 Marcus Daniell of New Zealand and No. 50 Dominic Inglot of the United Kingdom.
Social Center
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.