WACO, Tx. – On the second day of the ITA National Indoor Team Championships, No. 17 LSU defeated No. 8 Texas A&M, 4-3, at the Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center. The Tigers, down 1-3, completed the comeback to claim their first top ten win of the season.
LSU improves to 8-1, while Texas A&M falls to 6-3.
“I’m really proud of the guys after losing the tough doubles point,” said head coach Danny Bryan. “We had so many guys step up in singles. Matias [Ponce de Leon] got off the court quickly, which was super important after losing the doubles point. Then, Rudy [Ceccon] was able to close his match out. Sasa [Markovic] was able to swing his match after losing the first set, winning the second and third convincingly, never taking his foot off the gas. And then that moment for Erik [Arutiunian] is certainly the biggest of his young college career. He played very well after not finishing the second set as he wanted to, stepping up and going for his shots. We all have so much confidence in him, and I’m really proud of the team as a whole.”
No. 81 Arutiunian and Ponce de Leon took the top court for the second consecutive day, seeking to maintain their perfect doubles record against No. 33 Kholowam Montsi and Alexander Frusina. The freshman-senior duo started steadily, holding with strong service games as they have all season. However, at 4-4, the Aggies stole a break, setting themselves up to serve for the match. Unable to rally, the Tiger duo suffered their first loss of the season together, falling to A&M, 6-4.
A new pairing occurred at the third spot again, with Markovic and Ceccon facing off against Kriish Tyagi and Tiago Pires. After conceding an early break at 2-1, the Tigers stepped up to overcome their deficit and tie the set at four games all. Up 5-4, Markovic and Ceccon took advantage of the opportunity to break for the match, putting it away 6-4. A deciding set would ensue once more for the doubles point.
Olaf Pieczkowski made his ITA Indoor Championships debut alongside partner Enzo Kohlmann, landing on court No. 2 for the second time this season. They matched up with Theo Papamalamis and Lathan Skrobarcek. Like the rest of the doubles matches today, games were traded back and forth for most of the match. Down 5-4, 40-0, the Tigers faced four match points. With all eyes on them, they remarkably won four points in a row to tie it back at five all, eventually forcing a tiebreak. The Aggies opened with a 3-0 lead, ultimately providing enough cushion to prevent another comeback, downing the Tigers 7-6 (3). Texas A&M led LSU, 1-0.
Ponce de Leon returned to court four, where he has played most of this season. Following yesterday’s match, where he was on the brink of losing a one-set lead before the match was clinched, he looked to regain momentum. Ponce de Leon stormed to a 3-0 lead to open the set, sitting comfortably up a break. Then, he bagged three of the next five games, taking the set against Tiago Pires, 6-2. Pires hung in the second set slightly longer but found himself facing another three-game deficit at 4-1. Ponce de Leon has played many tight matches this season, swinging either way. Today, he prevented the comeback, serving out the final two games to close the set 6-3. With his fourth singles win in a row, he put LSU on the board, tying the Aggies 1-1.
Continuing his ITA Indoor Championships debut, Pieczkowski entered the top court to battle his second ranked opponent of the season and doubles foe, No. 42 Papamalamis. He got off to a slow start, allowing two breaks that led to a 4-0 difference. With the first set’s result not much in question, Pieczkowski picked up a game and some momentum before it wrapped up at 6-1. Ready to flip the script, the freshman went stride for stride in the second set, each player threatening to surge ahead multiple times. Unfortunately, it was the Polish native who let up a break in the last game of the set, resulting in a 6-4 loss. Texas A&M regained the lead over LSU, 2-1.
Seeking to bounce back from doubles, Kohlmann checked in at the No. 3 spot against Montsi. In his previous match that went unfinished, Kohlmann took the first set, but lost momentum down the stretch, facing a large deficit in the third before the match was clinched. Today, he opened with an even contest, holding serve almost the entirety of the first set. Unfortunately, Montsi got the advantage late, claiming the first break of the match to ice it 7-5. The succeeding set began similarly, reaching a 2-2 stalemate. However, it was here that Montsi would string together four straight games to conclude the set, 6-2. The Aggies, leading 3-1, were one point away from getting back in the win column.
Slotted at the sixth spot, Ceccon aimed to recover from the previous match, where he was unable to close out his leads. The opening set featured strikes by both Ceccon and his opponent, Tyagi. Each player appeared to gain the upper hand multiple times, but it was the French native who landed at 5-3, a game away from finishing the first set. Despite Tyagi’s effort to bring it level again at 5-5, Ceccon prevented another lost lead, closing it out at 7-5. Deterred, the Aggie struggled to find a spark even after starting 2-2 in the next set. Here, Ceccon ran away with the match, making a four-game run to close it at 6-2. LSU hung in the match, still trailing Texas A&M 2-3.
Markovic, the previous match’s lone singles winner, returned to court five today. Against the fresh legs of Markus Molder, he dropped to an early 4-2 disadvantage. Unable to recover, Molder put the set away at 6-3. With the help of associate coach Justin Butsch, Markovic found energy, pushing him to fight for every point. He broke early on and hit a stride in his service games. With a 5-3 lead, it was now Molder who was searching for energy. Set on the line, he had three break points at 40-15. Markovic prevailed, wrapping up the set, 6-3, forcing a decider. After opening with a break, the Serbian was on a heater. Steamrolling through every game, Markovic posted a 6-0 final set, closing it with an ace. His win streak of four matches Ponce de Leon for the current longest on the team. LSU 3, Texas A&M 3, all heads turning to court two.
At the No. 2 spot. Arutiunian and Frusina’s match was intriguing from the start. Following four consecutive breaks to open, the set progressed to a 5-3 lead held by Frusina. Focused on responding to his previous match loss, Arutiunian won the next four games, dramatically stealing the set 7-5. The second set too began with an exchange of breaks, followed by steady service games until late. At 5 games apiece and the last match on court, Frusina prevented the Belarus native from putting away the match, claiming back-to-back games to force a decider after 7-5. The difference in the final set came midway through when Arutiunian broke his opponent’s serve to take a 4-3 advantage. Flustered, Frusina failed to log another game, leading the freshman to come out on top, 6-3. LSU returned to its winning ways, completing the comeback against Texas A&M 4-3.
Up Next
LSU will face the winner of No. 9 UCF or UC Santa Barbara tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. CT in the final match of the consolation draw.
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LSU vs Texas A&M
02/14/2026 at Waco, Texas
Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center
#17 LSU 4, #8 Texas A&M 3
Singles competition
1. #42 Theo Papamalamis (TAMU) def. Olaf Pieczkowski (LSU) 6-1, 6-4
2. #110 Erik Arutiunian (LSU) def. Alex Frusina (TAMU) 7-5, 5-7, 6-3
3. Kholo Montsi (TAMU) def. Enzo Kohlmann (LSU) 7-5, 6-2
4. Matias Ponce De Leon (LSU) def. Tiago Pires (TAMU) 6-2, 6-3
5. Sasa Markovic (LSU) def. Markus Molder (TAMU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-0
6. Rudy Ceccon (LSU) def. Kriish Tyagi (TAMU) 7-5, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. #33 Alex Frusina/Kholo Montsi (TAMU) def. #81 Erik Arutiunian/Matias Ponce De Leon (LSU) 6-4
2. Theo Papamalamis/Lathan Skrobarcek (TAMU) def. Enzo Kohlmann/Olaf Pieczkowski (LSU) 7-6 (7-3)
3. Rudy Ceccon/Sasa Markovic (LSU) def. Tiago Pires/Kriish Tyagi (TAMU) 6-4
Match Notes:
LSU 8-1; National ranking #17
Texas A&M 6-3; National ranking #8
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (4,1,3,6,5,2)
T-3:05