BATON ROUGE — The 21st-ranked LSU women’s tennis team picked up four victories in singles play on Tuesday, as the Lady Tigers’ edged the Florida State Seminoles, 4-3, at the W.T. “Dub” Robinson Tennis Center.
“I think that we competed really well today,” said LSU head coach Tony Minnis. “I’m proud of the fact that we had a couple of kids who weren’t playing their best tennis today, but were able to find a way to win. We just need to continue to look forward to improving.”
LSU’s Lauren Haddix, a sophomore from Charleston, W. Va., clinched the match for the Lady Tigers as she overcame a one-set deficit to defeat Florida State’s Marina Raic, 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-1, in the sixth and final singles match of the day. The overall team score was knotted at three-points apiece when Haddix completed the LSU victory.
Florida State earned an early 1-0 lead as its No. 2 doubles team comprised of Christina Denny and Samantha Schoeffer held off the Lady Tigers’ pair of Fernanda Tsucamoto and Amy McIlhaney, 8-6, to win the doubles point.
The teams exchanged blowouts on doubles courts numbered one and three. LSU’s Bruna Colosio and Rocio Fantilli dominated the Seminoles’ Alida Gallovits and Nanette Duxin, 8-0, on court No. 1, while Florida State’s Raic/Carratala overpowered the Lady Tigers’ No. 3 doubles team comprised of Tami Botts and Haddix, 8-1.
“I was a little disappointed in the way that our doubles teams played today,” Minnis said. “Florida State is a very good doubles team, but I don’t think that we played our best, and that put us in a bit of a hole. The thing that is admirable is that we won two three-set matches to win the match, and we were just fighting and scrapping all over the place.”
With LSU trailing 0-1 at the conclusion of the doubles round, the Lady Tigers’ Tsucamoto evened the score at one by handily defeating Florida State’s Christy Travis, 6-2, 6-1, on court No. 5. Fourth-second ranked Colosio gave LSU a 2-1 lead in No. 1 singles with a 7-5, 6-1, victory over the Seminoles’ No. 68 Gallovits. The win marked Colosio’s ninth-straight this season.
Fantilli, the Lady Tigers’ phenomenal freshman from Puerto Madrin, Argentina, ultimately gave the LSU women’s team its final advantage as she recovered from a 6-4 loss in the first set to come from behind and defeat Florida State’s Christina Denny on court No. 2. The final score of the match was 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, in favor of Fantilli.
“There were a lot of positive things that I saw in this match today, but at the same time we need to continue improving as a team,” said Minnis.
The 21st-ranked LSU women’s tennis team will next be in action on Thursday, February 15, in Houston, Texas, to do battle with the University of Houston at 1:30 p.m.
#21 LSU 4, Florida State 3
Singles
1. #42 Bruna Colosio (LSU) def. #68 Alida Gallovits (FSU), 7-5, 6-1.
2. Rocio Fantilli (LSU) def. Christina Denny (FSU). 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.
3. Nanette Duxin (FSU) def. Tami Botts (LSU), 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.
4. Lauren Haddix (LSU) def. Marina Raic (FSU), 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-1.
5. Fernanda Tsucamoto (LSU) def. Christy Travis (FSU), 6-2, 6-1.
6. Samantha Schoeffer (FSU) def. Mandy Rice (LSU), 5-7, 6-4, 6-2.
Doubles
1. Colosio/Fantilli (LSU) def. Gallovits/Duxin (FSU), 8-0.
2. Denny/Schoeffer (FSU) def. Tsucamoto/McIlhaney (LSU), 8-6.
3. Raic/Carratala (FSU) def. Botts/Haddix (LSU), 8-1.