STARKVILLE, Miss. — The LSU women’s tennis team fell in the first round of the Southeastern Conference tournament for the fifth time in eight years on Thursday, as the Lady Tigers were defeated by the home-standing Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs, 4-1, here in Starkville, Miss.
“We came out and played really flat today,” said LSU head coach Tony Minnis. “We got behind early in the match by losing the doubles point and we never really did get on track. I have to give a lot of credit to Mississippi State because they played some great tennis throughout the match and playing at home was definitely an advantage for them.”
With Mississippi State leading the match by a score of 3-1, the Lady Bulldogs’ Claudia Oliveira earned the team’s third trip to the second round of the SEC tournament in school history by defeating LSU’s Fernanda Tsucamoto on court No. 3, 6-4, 6-4. Mississippi State has only advanced to the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament three times ever, but the Lady Bulldogs have accomplished the feat twice in consecutive seasons.
The Lady Tigers dropped to an overall record of 14-9 with the loss and fell to a 4-8 mark against conference opponents this season. Mississippi State improved to an 8-11 dual-match record and upped its record to 4-8 versus conference foes. With the win, the Lady Bulldogs avenged a 4-3 regular season defeat against LSU earlier this season in Starkville, Miss.
LSU fell behind early in the match as the Lady Bulldogs earned the doubles point with wins on courts 2 and 3. The Lady Tigers’ 23rd-ranked combination of Bruna Colosio and Rocio Fantilli earned LSU’s lone doubles victory on court No. 1 by defeating Mississippi State’s tandem of Claudia Oliveira and Carole Soubis, 8-5.
In singles play, the Lady Bulldogs jumped out to a 3-0 lead with straight-set victories on courts No. 6 and No. 4. Mississippi State’s No. 6 singles player, Linda Mattsson, breezed by Amy McIlhaney, 6-2, 6-1, for the second point of the match, while the Lady Bulldogs’ Anca Vasiloaica outplayed LSU’s Lauren Haddix, 6-4, 6-2, on court No. 4.
The Lady Tigers’ Tami Botts, a junior from Ashland, Ore., earned LSU’s only point of the match on Thursday with a 6-2, 6-2, victory over Mississippi State’s Yumi Ueda on court No. 5. With the win, Botts improved to an overall record of 19-18 on the season.
The LSU women’s tennis team will next be in action on May 11, as the Lady Tigers compete in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. LSU’s first-round opponent and tournament site has not yet been determined.
Mississippi State: 4, LSU: 1
Singles
1. #8 Bruna Colosio (LSU) vs. Carole Soubis (MSU), suspended.
2. Rocio Fantilli (LSU) vs. #84 Amelie Detriviere (MSU), suspended.
3. Claudia Oliviere (MSU) def. Fernanda Tsucamoto (LSU), 6-4, 6-4.
4. Anca Vasiloaica (MSU) def. Lauren Haddix (LSU), 6-4, 6-2.
5. Tami Botts (LSU) def. Yumi Ueda (MSU), 6-2, 6-2.
6. Linda Mattsson (MSU) def. Amy McIlhaney (LSU), 6-2, 6-1.
Doubles
1. #23 Colosio/Fantilli (LSU) def. Oliveira/Soubis (MSU), 8-5.
2. Detriviere/Sagae (MSU) def. McIlhaney/Tsucamoto (LSU), 9-7.
3. Mattsson/Ueda (MSU) def. Botts/Haddix (LSU), 8-5.