BATON ROUGE, La. – Erik Arutiunian of the No. 7 LSU men’s tennis team was awarded Co-SEC Freshman of the Week, the league office announced on Wednesday. It marks the second time he has received this honor.
Arutiunian posted a 4-1 mark across last week’s matches, headlining his impressive performances with two ranked wins that improved his record to 5-1 over nationally ranked opponents. Most notably, in the latest ITA singles rankings, Arutiunian cracked the top-25 for the first time, landing at No. 24 in the nation – a thirty-spot jump from his previous position.
Arutiunian holds a 14-2 singles record on the season, remaining undefeated in the SEC at 5-0. Furthermore, he extended his win streak to a season-high of nine matches, rounding out his 5-1 tally on the top court and 9-1 on court two. In doubles, he and Matias ponce de Leon climbed from No. 59 to No. 42 in the latest ITA rankings. Their 13-3 record has greatly contributed to LSU taking the doubles point in 18 of its 22 matches this season. Additionally, the duo is 5-2 in the SEC, continuing to dominate at the second spot in the heat of conference play.
On Friday, March 13, No. 6 LSU defeated Oklahoma in a tight 4-3 victory at the LSU Tennis Complex. Arutiunian took on the second spot with Ponce de Leon, facing Alejandro Melero and Hank Trondson. After suffering an early break and falling to a 3-1 deficit, they fired right back to level the score at 3-3. Each team put up formidable service games, holding for the remainder of the set until a tiebreak was forced at 6-6. The decider stayed tight as it approached 3-3 at the switch. Here, Arutiunian and Ponce de Leon upped their level, reeling off four-straight points to win the set, 7-6(3). The freshman-senior pair clinched the doubles point for LSU once more this season, later proving critical in the Tigers’ 4-3 takedown of the Sooners.
No. 54 Arutiunian took on court two in a duel with No. 108 Oscar Lacides. Arutiunian logged an early break, surging to a 3-2 lead before keeping the energy to push it to 5-2. Though Lacides began a late push by stealing a break, Arutiunian fended it off and closed the opening set, 6-3. The freshman carried his momentum into the next set, storming to a commanding 3-0 advantage. He never lost control and refused to give Lacides another chance, cruising to a 6-1 second-set victory. Arutiunian overpowered his opponent and quickly got off the court to help LSU take a 2-0 lead over Oklahoma.
On Sunday, March 15, against No.11 Texas A&M, No. 54 Arutiunian entered court two once more, this time facing No. 86 Alexander Frusina. In their first meeting together this season at the ITA National Indoor Team Championships, Arutiunian defeated Frusina in the three-set thriller that clinched the match for LSU, 4-3. This time around, the Belarus native seized control early, overwhelming Frusina from the jump en route to a dominant 6-0 first-set win. It became a contest in the second set, however, as Frusina notched four straight after dropping the opening game, taking a 4-1 lead. Although Arutiunian was able to work his way back into the set to bring it to 4-3, Frusina prevailed and forced a decider after taking the final two games and winning the second set, 6-3. In the final set, the first-year Tiger returned to top form, creating an early cushion at 2-0. Arutiunian never allowed Frusina to close the gap, outplaying his opponent for the remainder of the match as he battled to close the third set, 6-2, remaining perfect over the Aggie this season.
On Sunday evening, Arutiunian paired up with Sasa Markovic to finish the day on the top court against New Orleans’s Carlos Melgosa and Beltran Fernandez. After splitting the opening two games, the Tigers created substantial separation and continued to dictate play throughout the set, ultimately winning with a commanding 6-2 scoreline.
Arutiunian is now No. 24 in singles and No. 42 in doubles, largely thanks to last week’s results. He’s been the Tigers’ most reliable force all season, playing his best tennis right now with a nine-match win streak and an impressive 14-2 singles record. His 14-3 doubles record also shows Arutiunian’s continuous improvement all season, and how he is getting hot at the right time during the heart of SEC play.
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