BATON ROUGE- With only two days until the start of the 2018 LSU men’s tennis season, here is the third part of the 2018 team introduction.
LSU opens the season with matches against Arkansas Pine-Bluff on Jan. 19 and Jan. 20 at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. each day.
Get to Know the Juniors
Two-year letterwinner Nikola Samardzic and redshirt Shane Monroe make up this season’s junior class. The two bring veteran experience to the court and have the ability to make a mark on this season.
Samardzic accumulated a team-best 25 singles victories during the 2016-17 season. During his two seasons, he has spent time across all six courts and has etched himself into a mainstay in the LSU singles lineup.
During the fall season, Samardzic tied with sophomore Rafael Wagener for most individual singles wins with seven. He also secured a team-high three doubles wins.
In the ITA Southern Regional, Samardzic played his way into the singles round of 32 and reached the doubles round of 16 with partner Julian Saborio.
With a straight-set win against Georgia State’s Jack MacFarlane, the New York City, New York. native played his way into the finals of the John Breaux Cajun Classic to open the fall season.
“Nikola is a great leader on and off of the court,” co-head coach Andy Brandi said. “He works as hard as anyone out there and could be positioned to have a breakthrough year.”
Last season, Monroe practiced with the team but sat out in competitions due to NCAA transfer rules. With the Ventnor City, New Jersey, now eligible to compete, he will be another forve that the Tigers will turn to on the courts.
Monroe spent two seasons at BYU, where he opened the Fall 2016 campaign ranked No. 90 in the ITA singles standings. During his sophomore season, he earned All-West Coast Conference honors where he was named to the second team in singles.
He compiled a 37-17 singles record in two seasons at BYU and led the team in singles victories during his sophomore season with 21 wins.
“Shane is a big, strong kid that we expect to be a very solid player for the Tigers. He has all of the tools to succeed on the court,” Brandi added.
Lagniappe
Ken Skupski has entered the main draw at the Australian Open. He will compete on Court 13 with American partner James Cerretani, who is ranked No. 88 in the world in doubles.
With the addition of Ken Skupski to the Australian Open Doubles Main Draw, LSU now has three representatives who will each take the court at 6 p.m. CT Wednesday.
Neal Skupski along with Adil Shamasdin will square off against Marcus Daniell and Dominic Inglot on Court 10.
Eight-seeds Michael Venus and Raven Klaasen are the first match of men’s doubles on Court 12. They compete against Scott Lipsky and David Marrero.
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.