NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Redshirt junior Ryan Lipman secured No. 25 Vanderbilt’s fifth-straight win Friday afternoon over the No. 39 LSU Tigers, 4-3, at the Currey Tennis Center in the 2013 SEC opener.
Vanderbilt (10-3, 1-0) needed its best effort in singles play to hold off a feisty LSU (5-3, 0-1) team in the conference opener for both squads.
Leading 3-2, Vanderbilt turned to its leader, Lipman, to bring home the win, and Lipman would not disappoint. Lipman won the first set, 6-4, over Chris Simpson before Simpson battled back to win the second set, 6-3. The third set would go down to the wire, as both players traded wins to get to 4-4. With the set tied, 4-4, Lipman would go on to win the final two games and take the set, 6-4.
Lipman’s win makes the Nashville native 21-5 this season and 11-1 in dual action.
LSU began the match by winning the all-important doubles point with wins at positions Nos. 2 and 3. At No. 2, Simpson and Stefan Szacinski, who are ranked No. 41 in the country, defeated Gonzales Austin and Suresh Eswaran, 8-4.
The Tigers clinched the point with a win on court No. 3, as Boris Arias and Olivier Borsos came back to defeat Jeff Offerdahl and Rhys Johnson, 9-7. Offerdahl and Johnson led midway through the match 6-4, but a late rally carried the Tigers to a win.
Lipman and Marc van der Merwe recorded the lone win for Vanderbilt at No. 1. The Vandy duo defeated Roger Anderson and Tam Trinh, 8-3.
Vanderbilt was able to put the doubles point behind them quickly, as the Commodores were able to get wins in singles at Nos. 2 and 4 to take the lead, 2-1.
Austin powered through his opponent, (Tam) Trinh, 6-2, 6-2, in the No. 2 position. With the win, Austin is 17-6 overall this season and 6-1 in the No. 2 spot. In the No. 4 position, Offerdahl defeated (Roger) Anderson in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4.
LSU evened the match at 2-2 with (Olivier) Borsos’ win at No. 3 over van der Merwe, 6-3, 6-4. However, Kris Yee would not let the Tigers keep the match tied for long. Yee recorded his 11th-straight win in singles with his victory over Mark Bowtell in the No. 5 spot, 6-4, 6-2. The Las Vegas, Nev., native continues to find ways to win.
LSU’s Harrison Kennedy closed the match with a win at No. 6 over (Rhys) Johnson, 7-6(2), 7-5.
Vanderbilt hosts Arkansas Sunday at 12 p.m. at the Currey Tennis Center before the Commodores hit the road for three-straight matches.
Singles Results
1. No. 25 Ryan Lipman (Vanderbilt) def. Chris Simpson (LSU) 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
2. No. 41 Gonzales Austin (Vanderbilt) def. Tam Trinh (LSU) 6-2, 6-2
3. Olivier Borsos (LSU) def. Marc van der Merwe (Vanderbilt) 6-3, 6-4
4. Jeff Offerdahl (Vanderbilt) def. Roger Anderson (LSU) 6-2, 6-4
5. Kris Yee (Vanderbilt) def. Mark Bowtell (LSU) 6-4, 6-2
6. Harrison Kennedy (LSU) def. Rhys Johnson (Vanderbilt) 7-6(2), 7-5
Doubles Results
1. Lipman/van der Merwe (Vanderbilt) def. Anderson/Trinh (LSU) 8-3
2. No. 41 Simpson/Szacinski (LSU) def. Austin/Eswaran (Vanderbilt) 8-4
3. Arias/Borsos (LSU) def. Offerdahl/Johnson (Vanderbilt) 9-7
Order of Finish
Singles: 2,4,3,5,1,6
Doubles: 2,1,3
