College Tennis News - Auburn Men Sweep SEC Weekend with 5-2 Win over LSU

AUBURN - The No. 27-ranked Auburn men's tennis team finished off a perfect weekend in Southeastern Conference play, earning a 5-2 win over No. 25 LSU on a breezy Sunday afternoon at the Yarbrough Tennis Center.

"I think our doubles continued to get a little bit better," Auburn head coach Eric Shore said. "I saw some good things in doubles. In singles, it was so tight. We won a couple of those tight first sets and we kept the momentum going. It was a good effort from the guys against a very good LSU team."

Auburn (12-4, 2-2 SEC) downed LSU (8-4, 2-2 SEC) for the seventh time in their last eight meetings. It also gave Shore his 299th career victory as Auburn's head coach. Senior Alex Stamchev also became the first player in Auburn history to reach 100 career doubles victories.

Stamchev helped the Tigers won the doubles point as 16th ranked duo of himself and Andreas Mies routed Olivier Borsos and Chris Simpson, 8-3, on court one. On court three, Lucas Lopasso and Rafael Rondino edged out Roger Anderson and Stefan Szacinski, 8-5, to secure the doubles point. On court two, Daniel Cochrane and Lukas Ollert were narrowly defeated by Neal Skupski and James Tubervill, 8-7 (2).

In singles, Stamchev topped Skupski, 6-4, 6-2 on court two, just moments before Lucas Lopasso raced past Tubervill, 6-4, 6-2 on court five. Shortly thereafter, No. 118 Lukas Ollert clinched the win for Auburn by defeating Szacinski, 6-3, 6-2 on court four.

The Bayou Bengals picked up a point on court six as Tom Knights snapped Michael Wardell's five-match winning streak, 6-4, 6-3. On court one, 20th-ranked Andreas Mies picked up his fifth win over a ranked opponent this season after defeating No. 66 Olivier Borsos, 7-5, 6-1.

On court three, LSU's Simpson concluded the match with a 7-6 (3), 7-5 victory over Cochrane.

The match was delayed for about 30 minutes due to a brief rain shower that passed through the Auburn area just as singles play was about to begin. Officials briefly considered moving the match indoors, but it was determined that play could continue outside.

Next up for the Tigers will be a trip to Orlando, Fla., to take on the UCF Knights on at 8:30 a.m. Friday.

"We will get a nice little break from SEC play," Shore said of the upcoming week. "We need a little rest and it will be our last open weekend with the SEC schedule, so we are looking forward to it."

Auburn Men's Tennis Results
March 11, 2012
Yarbrough Tennis Center - Auburn, Ala.

#27 Auburn 5, #25 LSU 2

Singles
1. #20 Andreas Mies (AU) def. #66 Olivier Borsos (LSU) 7-5, 6-1
2. Alex Stamchev (AU) def. Neal Skupski (LSU) 6-4, 6-2
3. Chris Simpson (LSU) def. Daniel Cochrane (AU) 7-6 (7-3), 7-5
4. #118 Lukas Ollert (AU) def. Stefan Szacinski (LSU) 6-3, 6-2
5. Lucas Lopasso (AU) def. James Tubervill (LSU) 6-4, 6-2
6. Tom Knights (LSU) def. Michael Wardell (AU) 6-4, 6-3
Order of finish: 2,5,4,6,1,3

Doubles
1. #16 Alex Stamchev/Andreas Mies (AU) def. Olivier Borsos/Chris Simpson (LSU) 8-3
2. Neal Skupski/James Tubervill (LSU) def. Daniel Cochrane/Lukas Ollert (AU) 8-7 (7-2)
3. Lucas Lopasso/Rafael Rondino (AU) def. Roger Anderson/Stefan Szacinski (LSU) 8-5
Order of finish: 1,3,2

Match Notes
LSU 8-4 (2-2 SEC); National ranking #25
Auburn 12-4 (2-2 SEC); National ranking #27