Men?s Tennis on the Road at LSU and Arkansas
4/5/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
TUSCALOOSA, Ala.- The No. 12 University of Alabama men's tennis team heads on the road this weekend to face No. 13 LSU and Arkansas in conference action. The Crimson Tide plays LSU Friday at 2:00 p.m. at the WT "Dub" Robinson Tennis Stadium before heading to Fayetteville to take on Arkansas at 1:00 p.m. at the Outdoor Tennis Facility.
"Friday night at LSU will present a difficult task for us," said Alabama head coach Billy Pate. "They have a great team and have spent time in the top-10 this year. Also, I'm sure they will have a spirited crowd on hand. We'll have to play our best to be successful."
Alabama (15-5, 5-3 SEC) is coming off a successful weekend after defeating No. 15 Florida and No. 58 South Carolina in Tuscaloosa. With the wins, Alabama remains third in the West but continues to inch closer to LSU.
Billy Mertz joins the growing list of Crimson Tide in the ITA rankings, debuting at No. 86 this week after two significant wins over Georgia's Luis Flores and Florida's Nestor Briceno. Along with Mertz, Joseph Jung remains ranked at No. 89, while Dan Buikema and Mathieu Thibaudeau are ranked No. 26 in doubles.
LSU (13-4, 5-3 SEC) split with Ole Miss and Mississippi State last weekend, leaving them in second place in the West behind Ole Miss. Like Alabama, LSU relies on its strong doubles play and is led by its top pair of Danny Bryan and Colt Gaston ranked No. 7. Ken Skupski and James Cluskey, the Tiger's No. 2 tandem, are also in the rankings at No. 19. Alabama trails the series with LSU 17-31, dating back to its inception in 1950.
Arkansas (7-17, 0-8 SEC) continues to look for its first conference win. The Razorbacks fell to Mississippi State and Ole Miss last weekend, leaving them last in the West. The series between Alabama and Arkansas is tied at nine matches a piece, with the Tide defeating the Razorbacks, 4-3, last season.
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