BATON ROUGE — The LSU women’s tennis team got back on track Sunday, winning its second Southeastern Conference match by defeating Auburn, 5-2, at W.T. Robinson Tennis Stadium.
After dropping a 5-2 contest to Alabama on Friday, the Lady Tigers (10-10, 2-8 SEC) roared back to grab the weekend split.
“This was a great team effort,” LSU head coach Tony Minnis said. “Everyone contributed to the win, and it was good to see us play like that as a whole team.”
Auburn fell to 5-15 for the year, still winless in the SEC at 0-10.
It was Anastasiya Dubova‘s three-set win over Irina Pjlusznyin on court three that cemented the win for LSU. She split the first two sets, winning the first, 6-4, and dropping the second by the same margin. Then with the third set tied at 2-all, Dubova took control and allowed her opponent only one point in the final four games to win, 6-2.
“I was really proud of the way she played,” Minnis said of Dubova’s clincher. “She has improved tremendously this year, and it was nice for her to be able to clinch this match for us like that.”
The Lady Tigers began the afternoon by winning the doubles point, something they had not done in six matches.
Marina Chiarelli and Dubova captured their third straight win as a pair, 8-3, over Dzeljan Memisi and Pjlusznyin on court two to start things off. Daysi Espinal and Lauren Seaman grabbed an 8-3 decision of their own on the three court over Erin Gray and Whitney Chappell to clinch the early point for LSU.
Auburn took the first singles point with a court two win by Alex Haney over Chiarelli. After pulling off the upset of Alabama’s Ashley Bentley on Friday, Chiarelli could not carry that momentum over to Sunday’s match, falling, 6-1, 6-4.
LSU regained the lead with Daysi Espinal‘s drubbing of Grey on court six, 6-1, 6-2. The win upped Espinal’s total to 16 for the year, the most of anyone on the team. She has won five of her last six matches.
The Lady Tigers extended their lead to 3-1 when Hedberg pulled away from Chappell, 6-4, 7-5. Dubova then clinched the victory with her three-set court three win.
Camila Caliari and Seaman played three-set matches as well. Caliari won hers on court five while Seaman dropped hers in the four spot.
The Lady Tigers make a road trip to Tulsa for their final non-conference match Wednesday at 4 p.m. They return home to conclude the regular season with a Saturday match versus Arkansas at 1 p.m.
Match Results
#61 LSU 5, Auburn 2
Singles competition
1. Mykala Hedberg (LSU) def. Whitney Chappell (AU) 6-4, 7-5
2. Alex Haney (AU) def. Marina Chiarelli (LSU) 6-1, 6-4
3. Anastasiya Dubova (LSU) def. Irina Pljusznyin (AU) 6-4, 4-6, 6-2
4. Ashley Cowart (AU) def. Lauren Seaman (LSU) 4-6, 7-6 (9-7), 6-0
5. Camila Caliari (LSU) def. Dzeljan Memisi (AU) 6-7 (4-7), 7-5, 6-1
6. Daysi Espinal (LSU) def. Erin Gray (AU) 6-1, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. Alex Haney/Ashley Cowart (AU) def. Tiffany Tucker/Mykala Hedberg (LSU) 8-6
2. Marina Chiarelli/Anastasiya Dubova (LSU) def. Dzeljan Memisi/Irina Pljusznyin (AU) 8-3
3. Daysi Espinal/Lauren Seaman (LSU) def. Erin Gray/Whitney Chappell (AU) 8-3
Match Notes:
Auburn 5-15 (0-10 SEC)
LSU 10-10 (2-8 SEC); National ranking #61
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (2,6,1,3,5,4)