Mascall Triumphs on Senior Day But No. 17 LSU Wins 5-2
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – A late rally by the Razorback tennis team, including wins by Chris Nott and Colin Mascall, wasn’t enough as No. 17 LSU came away with a 5-2 victory Saturday at the Dills Indoor Stadium. The Tigers built a 3-0 lead before Nott and Mascall pulled Arkansas (12-12, 3-8) within one. LSU clinched the match when Colt Gaston beat Matt Hogan in three sets at No. 4 singles.
LSU (13-7, 6-5) won the doubles point with wins on courts two and three. Jonathan Tragardh and Michael Venus topped Nott and Taylor King, 8-1, at the No. 2 position. On court three, Mascall and Tyler Tarnasky led 6-3 before Jan Zelezny and Sebastian Carlsson rattled off five straight games to take the match, 8-6, and give the Tigers a 1-0 lead.
At No. 1 doubles, Gaston and Kevin Dessauer led the Razorback duo of Matt Hogan and Blake Strode, 6-5, when play was suspended after the point had been clinched.
Dessauer and Carlsson gave LSU a 3-0 lead with win on court three and six, respectively. Dessauer beat Dmitry Lebedev, 6-2, 6-4, while Carlsson edged Bradwin Williams in a tight, two-set match, 7-6(4), 6-4.
Nott picked up Arkansas’ first team point with a three-set win at No. 5 singles. The Razorback freshman defeated Julien Gauthier, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, for his fifth-consecutive win. Nott leads the UA netters with 24 wins this season.
Playing in his final regular-season home match, Mascall upset Zelezny, the 118th-ranked player in the nation, at No. 2 singles in straight sets, 7-5, 7-6(2), to cut the LSU lead to 3-2. It was Mascall’s first win over a ranked opponent since he beat Texas’ Milan Mihailovic in three sets last season.
At the time of Mascall’s win, Strode was ahead late in the second set against Venus on court one and the match at No. 4 singles between Hogan and Gaston was headed into a third set.
In that final set, Gaston used an early break to take a 4-1 lead. Hogan would hold serve in his next two games, but Gaston served out the match, 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3, to clinch the dual for LSU.
At No. 1 singles, Strode, ranked No. 99 in the nation, lost his second-set lead and the ensuing tiebreak which set up a third set. Venus, the No. 47 player in the rankings, jumped out to a 3-0 advantage in the final set and maintained the lead, winning the three setter, 6-7(5), 7-6(3), 6-3.
The Razorback netters will return to action Thursday during the first round of the SEC Tennis Championship at the George M. Billingsley Tennis Center. Seeding for next week’s championship will be announced Sunday by the conference office. Log on to www.hogwired.com for continued coverage of Arkansas tennis.
#17 LSU 5, #41 Arkansas 2
April 12, 2008
Fayetteville, Ark.
Singles
1. #47 Michael Venus (LSU) def. #99 Blake Strode (UA), 6-7(5), 7-6(3), 6-3
2. Colin Mascall (UA) def. Jan Zelezny (LSU), 7-5, 7-6(2)
3. Kevin Dessauer (LSU) def. Dmitry Lebedev (UA), 6-2, 6-4
*4. Colt Gaston (LSU) def. Matt Hogan (UA), 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3
5. Chris Nott (UA) def. Julien Gauthier (LSU), 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
6. Sebastian Carlsson (LSU) def. Bradwin Williams (UA), 7-6(4), 6-4
Doubles
1. Kevin Dessauer/Colt Gaston (LSU) led Matt Hogan/Blake Strode (UA), 6-5
2. Jonathan Tragardh/Michael Venus (LSU) def. Chris Nott/Taylor King (UA), 8-1
3. Jan Zelezny/Sebastian Carlsson (LSU) def. Colin Mascall/Tyler Tarnasky (UA), 8-6
Order of Finish: Doubles (2, 3); Singles (3, 6, 5, 2, *4, 1)
* – clinching match
