Men's Tennis Falls To No. 21 Tennessee, 4-2

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The LSU Men’s Tennis team (9-10, 0-7 SEC) battled but fell to No. 21 Tennessee (13-5, 4-3 SEC) by a score of 4-2 on Saturday.

The Tigers brought momentum into the match and secured the opening point at courts three and two. Brock Anderson and Alessio Vasquez quickly took down Jan Kobierski and Jose Garcia with a 6-2 win. Shortly after, Sasa Markovic and Andrej Loncarevic impressively defeated Shunsuke Mitsui and Alan Jesudason by a score of 6-3.

Heading into singles with the advantage, Aleksi Lofman was the first to walk off the court after a short intermission due to a facility issue. Despite the stoppage, Lofman took down Alejandro Moreno in two straight sets by a score of 6-4, 6-4. 

The Volunteers put their first point of the match on the board after No. 25 Shunsuke Mitsui defeated Julien Penzlin in a 6-4, 6-2 match.

Ian Cruz tied the match up at 2-2 at the No. 6 court after facing Ishaan Ravichander in a 7-5, 6-2 win.

The No. 2 singles court saw three sets between Sasa Markovic and No. 29 Alex Kotzen. The first frame was secured by Markovic by a score of 6-4 before Kotzen fought back to claim the second set 6-3. The forced third set was a 6-2 win for Kotzen, giving Tennessee a 3-2 lead.

Three sets were also played out at the No. 5 court between Andrej Loncarevic and Alan Jesudason. The Volunteer took the first set 6-3 but the Tiger quickly fought back to secure the second frame 6-2. The deciding set was narrowly won by Jesudason by a score of 6-4 to clinch the match for Tennessee.

The Tigers will head back home to Baton Rouge to host South Carolina at the LSU Tennis Complex Friday, March 21 at 5 p.m. CT.

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Results

#21 Tennessee 4, #75 LSU 2

Singles Competition

1. #25 Shunsuke Mitsui (TENN) def. Julien Penzlin (LSU) 6-4, 6-2
2. #29 Alex Kotzen (TENN) def. Sasa Markovic (LSU) 4-6, 6-3, 6-2
3. Jose Garcia (TENN) vs. Alessio Vasquez (LSU) 4-6, 6-2, 5-6, unfinished
4. Aleksi Lofman (LSU) def. Alejandro Moreno (TENN) 6-4, 6-4
5. Alan Jesudason (TENN) def. Andrej Loncarevic (LSU) 6-3, 2-6, 6-4
6. Ian Cruz (TENN) def. Ishann Ravichander (LSU) 7-5, 6-2

Doubles Competition

1. #11 Alex Kotzen/Alejandro Moreno (TENN) vs. #45 Julien Penzlin/Aleksi Lofman (LSU) 6-5, unfinished
2. Sasa Markovic/Andrej Loncarevic (LSU) def. Shunsuke Mitsui/Alan Jesudason (TENN) 6-3
3. Brock Anderson/Alessio Vasquez (LSU) def. Jan Kobierski/Jose Garcia (TENN) 6-2

Match Notes:

Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (4,1,6,2,5)