University of Louisville
LSU (National Indoor Qualifying)
No. 19 Men's Tennis Tops LSU 4-2
January 29, 2010 | Men's Tennis
Jan. 29, 2010
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - - The 19th ranked University of Louisville men's tennis team defeated No. 29 Louisiana State University 4-2 Friday afternoon in Tallahassee, Fla. in the first round of the National Indoor Qualifying Tournament.
"Anytime you defeat an SEC powerhouse like LSU you have to be happy", said U of L head coach Rex Ecarma. "This team has a long history of great success in the sport of tennis and I have tremendous respect for coach Jeff Brown and the LSU program. They showed how great they are in doubles by taking the doubles point, we had our chances and lost in a 9-8 tiebreaker after a 1-1 split. We told our guys to stay positive and believe that no matter what, we were going to come out on top. We wanted them to show strong body language and they did. We won five of the six first sets in singles and turned the momentum our way. I'm really proud of Austen winning doubles and singles - he is so reliable in big matches. Simon bounced back very well from his doubles loss with a convincing win. Robert Hall just does his thing Viktor played some good outdoor tennis today. We are really pleased, this is our third regional final in the last three regionals, we really want to do everything we can to win Louisville's first regional championship tomorrow."
The Cards began the day by falling early in the doubles matches and failing to capture the doubles point. Junior Austen Childs and freshman Chidi Gabriel won their match 8-4 against Olivier Borsos and Mark Bowtell 8-4, but LSU's Roger Anderson and Neal Skupski evened the count with an 8-5 victory over the Cards' juniors Simon Childs and Viktor Maksimcuk. LSU's Sebastian Carisson and Stefan Szacnski then secured the doubles point by beating Louisville's 33rd ranked tandem of junior Alejandro Calligari and sophomore Robert Hall 9-8 in the tiebreaker.
In singles play, LSU's Mark Bowtell edged No. 81 Andrew Carter 6-2, 6-3 at the four-spot. The Cards then rattled off three straight victories with No. 84 Simon Childs defeating No. 26 Neal Skupski at No. 2. Viktor Maksimcuk beat Olivier Borsos 6-3, 6-2 at the three-seed and Robert Hall topped James Tubervill 6-4, 6-4 at No. 6. Austen Childs, 46th in the ITA singles rankings, then clinched the match for the Cardinals by beating No.97 Sebastian Carisson 6-4, 7-5 at the top seed.
The Cards (4-0) are back in action tomorrow in Tallahassee in the finals of the tournament. They will play the winner of Florida State and Wisconsin with the winner advancing to the National Indoor Championships Feb. 12-15 in Charlottesville, Va.
#19 Louisville 4- # 29 Louisiana State 2
January 29, 2010 - Scott Speicher Tennis Center, Tallahassee, Fla.
Singles
1- #46 Austen Childs (UL) d. #97 Sebastian Carisson (LSU) 6-4, 7-5
2- #84 Simon Childs (UL) d. #26 Neal Skupski (LSU) 6-3, 6-4
3- Viktor Maksimcuk (UL) d. Olivier Borsos (LSU) 6-3, 6-2
4- Mark Bowtell (LSU) d. #81 Andrew Carter (UL) 6-2, 6-3
5- Alejandro Calligari (UL) vs. Stefan Szacinski (LSU) 5-7, 2-4 (suspended)
6- Robert Hall (UL) d. James Tubervill (LSU) 6-4, 6-4
Doubles
1- Anderson/Skupski (LSU) d. S. Childs/Maksimcuk (UL) 8-5
2- Carisson/Szacnski (LSU) d. #33 Calligari/Hall (UL) 9-8
3- A. Childs/Gabriel (UL) d. Borsos/Bowtell (LSU) 8-4
Players Mentioned
