LSU Gold

Kozlov, Thomas Earn Wins as Men's Tennis Falls to UGA

by Alissa Cavaretta
Box Score +0
Kozlov, Thomas Earn Wins as Men's Tennis Falls to UGA

ATHENS, Ga.— Freshmen Boris Kozlov and Joey Thomas secured matches on courts four and five in singles play but it was not enough for the No. 24 LSU men’s tennis team as they fell to No. 34 Georgia Bulldogs Saturday afternoon at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

With the win, Georgia improves to 6-5 on the season and 2-1 in SEC play while LSU drops to 12-4 on the year and 1-4 in conference.

Co-Head Coach Chris Brandi on the Match
We had opportunities in singles and doubles, but Georgia came up big when they needed to. Their crowd helped them a lot when their guys were down. Georgia will be top-20 at worst this year, and we were right in there. Tennis-wise there is a lot we can be proud of.”

Doubles Point
Tiger duo Kozlov and Watson were the first pair off of the court defeating Philip Henning and Trent Bryde, 6-2, on court three.

No. 43 Joey Thomas and Rafael Wagner dropped their match on court one to No. 65 Robert Loeb and Jan Zielinski, 6-3.

With the decision up to court two, Shane Monroe and Daniel Moreno forced a tiebreaker but came up short, 7-6(6) to Walker Duncan and Emil Reinberg, giving Georgia the 1-0 advantage moving into singles play.

Singles Results
Duncan worked a 6-3, 6-1 win on court six against Watson to propel Georgia to the 2-0 lead.

The Tigers earned their first point on court four when Kozlov earned his first ranked victory of the year defeating No. 95 Henning, 6-0, 7-6(6).

No. 10 Zielinski extended Georgia’s lead to 3-1 when he earned a 6-4, 7-6(6) win from Wagner on court two.

The Bulldogs clinched the match on court three when Bryde defeated Malik Bhatnagar on court three, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1.

Thomas was the next Tiger off the court and added a point to the board in favor of LSU when he defeated Loeb in three sets, 6-2, 6-7(2), 6-0.

The match concluded on court one when No. 20 Reinberg clinched his match on court one, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Next Up
LSU will return to action with a match against Old Dominion on Thursday, March 14 at 3:30 p.m. CT in the LSU Tennis Complex. There will be free pizza at the match for those who attend.

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.

#34 Georgia 5, #24 LSU 2

Singles competition
1. #20 Emil Reinberg (UGA) def. #112 Shane Monroe (LSU) 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
2. #10 Jan Zielinski (UGA) def. Rafael Wagner (LSU) 6-4, 7-6 (8-6)
3. Trent Bryde (UGA) def. Malik Bhatnagar (LSU) 2-6, 6-4, 6-1
4. Boris Kozlov (LSU) def. #95 Philip Henning (UGA) 6-0, 7-6 (8-6)
5. Joey Thomas (LSU) def. Robert Loeb (UGA) 6-2, 6-7 (2-7), 6-0
6. Walker Duncan (UGA) def. Nick Watson (LSU) 6-3, 6-1

Doubles competition
1. #65 Robert Loeb/Jan Zielinski (UGA) def. #43 Joey Thomas/Rafael Wagner (LSU) 6-3
2. Walker Duncan/Emil Reinberg (UGA) def. Shane Monroe/Daniel Moreno (LSU) 7-6 (8-6)
3. Boris Kozlov/Nick Watson (LSU) def. Philip Henning/Trent Bryde (UGA) 6-2

Match Notes:
LSU 12-4, 1-3; National ranking #24
Georgia 6-5, 2-1; National ranking #34
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (6,4,2,3,5,1)
Official: Karen Badger-Mabry T-3:00 A-281