University of Georgia Athletics
University of Georgia
LSU
Georgia Defeats LSU In SEC Quarterfinals
April 22, 2011 | Men's Tennis
April 22, 2011
GAINESVILLE, Fla. --- The Georgia men's tennis team used a score of 4-1 to defeat LSU Friday afternoon in Gainesville, earning a place in tomorrow's SEC Championships semifinals. The Bulldogs dropped the doubles point to the Tigers but bounced back to win four quick singles matches in near 90-degree temperatures at Ring Tennis Complex on the University of Florida campus.
Second-seeded Georgia improves to 20-4 on the season while dropping No. 7 LSU to 11-13. Head coach Manuel Diaz has now won 20 or more matches in 19 of his 23 seasons.
"We actually didn't play badly in doubles," Diaz said. "LSU just played tremendous. We didn't seem to get any momentum, but it wasn't for a lack of trying. LSU served and returned very well, especially at the latter stages. But we needed to put that behind us and challenge at every spot in singles, and keep our composure. The guys made the right decisions out there, and I was extremely pleased with the way they responded. We played with a lot of confidence. Sometimes during the postseason you're going to get challenged, and you have to win when you lose the doubles point if you want to keep going. We couldn't have aced that test any better."
Georgia fell in doubles with losses at the Nos. 1 and 3 spots. LSU took the win on three first as the team of Olivier Borsos and Julien Gauthier defeated Drake Bernstein and Wil Spencer 9-7. The Tigers clinched doubles with the win at No. 1 as 10th-ranked Sebastian Carlsson and Neal Skupski defeated No. 5 Javier Garrapiz and Hernus Pieters 8-4 to snap the Georgia pair's winning streak at eight. The third match between Ignacio Taboada and Sadio Doumbia of Georgia and Roger Anderson and Stefan Szacinski of LSU was on serve at 7-7 but was suspended.
But the Bulldogs fought back to win the first set on all six courts, before Taboada again claimed an early victory at No. 6 as the junior went 6-3, 6-3 over Gauthier to even the score at 1-1. After No. 52 Doumbia downed Szacinski, 6-4, 6-2, at No. 3, the rest was a race to the finish as Pieters and Spencer finished within moments of one another to give Georgia the 4-1 win.
Pieters was the third singles finisher as he defeated Carlsson 6-4, 6-1, at No. 5, and 18th-ranked Spencer provided the clincher in posting a 6-4, 6-1 decision over Borsos at No. 2. Georgia seniors Garrapiz and Bernstein were unfinished after splitting sets at Nos. 1 and 4, respectively. For Spencer, it was the fourth clincher of the season. Doumbia's win was his team-leading 33rd of the season.
Today marks the second time this season that Georgia beat LSU as the Bulldogs swept the Tigers 7-0 in Athens earlier this season.
The Bulldogs will meet Eastern Division rival Kentucky in tomorrow's semifinal match at 10 a.m. The Wildcats defeated Auburn by a close 4-3 score today in the quarters. Georgia is aiming to defend its regular-season SEC championship by taking its eighth all-time SEC Tournament title.
#5 Georgia 4, #33 LSU 1
Singles competition
1. #31 Javier Garrapiz (UGA) vs. #87 Neal Skupski (LSU) 6-3, 2-6, unfinished
2. #18 Wil Spencer (UGA) def. Olivier Borsos (LSU) 6-4, 6-1
3. #52 Sadio Doumbia (UGA) def. Stefan Szacinski (LSU) 6-4, 6-2
4. Drake Bernstein (UGA) vs. Mark Bowtell (LSU) 7-5, 2-6, unfinished
5. Hernus Pieters (UGA) def. Sebastian Carlsson (LSU) 6-4, 6-1
6. Ignacio Taboada (UGA) def. Julien Gauthier (LSU) 6-3, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. #10 Sebastian Carlsson/Neal Skupski (LSU) def. #5 Javier Garrapiz/Hernus Pieters (UGA) 8-4
2. #64 Sadio Doumbia/Ignacio Taboada (UGA) vs. Roger Anderson/Stefan Szacinski (LSU) 7-7, unfinished
3. Olivier Borsos/Julien Gauthier (LSU) def. Drake Bernstein/Wil Spencer (UGA) 9-7
Match Notes:
LSU 11-13; National ranking #33
Georgia 20-4; National ranking #5
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1); Singles (6,3,5,2)
