PALO ALTO, Calif. — The 25th-ranked LSU women’s tennis team advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight season by cruising past Long Beach State, 4-0, Saturday at Stanford’s Taube Tennis Center.
LSU (14-10) pulled out a tough doubles point to build momentum, and the Lady Tigers rolled to three singles wins to clinch the match.
LSU will face perennial power and host Stanford (18-4) in the second round Sunday at 3 p.m. CDT.
“I was impressed with how we came out in singles after a tight doubles point. That was our best singles performance of the season,” LSU head coach Tony Minnis said. “Stanford is an outstanding team, and I feel confident if we come out and play the same way in singles as we did against Long Beach. In doubles, Megan and Mykala played outstanding, but we need to play better at two and three if we hope to have an opportunity to win.”
The Lady Tigers took the early lead in doubles when 17th-ranked Megan Falcon and Mykala Hedberg crushed Long Beach State’s Deborah Armstrong and Lisa Sutton 8-0.
Long Beach (18-8) picked up a win on court two as Anais Dallara and Rachel Manasse defeated Hannah Robinson and Whitney Wolf 8-6, but it would mark the 49ers only victory of the day.
After losing the doubles point to Long Beach in last season’s match, LSU avoided the same fate by winning a tight match on court three to clinch the point. Nicole Kantor and Staten Spencer defeated Long Beach’s Hannah Grady and Julie Luzar in a tiebreaker 9-8 (6) to put LSU ahead 1-0.
In singles, the Lady Tigers built upon their momentum as LSU won the first set on all six courts.
No. 13 Falcon collected her 97th career victory as she cruised past 110th-ranked Grady on court one 6-1, 6-2. Falcon’s win moved her into a four-way tie for eighth place in LSU’s all-time career wins list, and it put LSU up 2-0 against the 49ers.
Freshman Whitney Wolf put the Lady Tigers up 3-0 when she knocked off Armstrong in straight sets 6-3, 6-3 to notch her second-straight victory.
Spencer, a senior from Memphis, Tenn., provided the clinching point on court six with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Sutton. The win marked the third time Spencer has clinched a match for the Lady Tigers this season.
When the match was clinched LSU led on two of the other courts and was tied on another. Kantor was one game away from providing the clinching victory as she led Dallara 6-4, 5-2 on court four, and Robinson was leading Luzar 6-3, 3-1 on court five when the match ended.
Hedberg split sets on court two, winning the first 6-2 against Manasse before dropping the second 6-3.
With the win LSU is now 2-0 all time against Long Beach State.
LSU’s match against Stanford will mark the first meeting between the teams.
The Lady Tigers will have their hands full as the Cardinal, the 13th seed in the tournament, have won 150 straight home matches dating back to Feb. 27, 1999 and are looking to win their NCAA-best 16th national title.
LSU fans can find a link to live stats and live video on www.LSUsports.net.
#25 LSU 4, #50 Long Beach State 0
April 9, 2009 at Palo Alto, Calif. (Taube Family Tennis Center)
Singles
1. #13 Megan Falcon (LSU) def. #110 Hannah Grady (LBSU) 6-1, 6-2
2. Mykala Hedberg (LSU) vs. Rachel Manasse (LBSU) 6-2, 3-6, unfinished
3. Whitney Wolf (LSU) def. Deborah Armstrong (LBSU) 6-3, 6-3
4. Nicole Kantor (LSU) vs. Anais Dallara (LBSU) 6-4, 5-2, unfinished
5. Hannah Robinson (LSU) vs. Julie Luzar (LBSU) 6-3, 3-1, unfinished
6. Staten Spencer (LSU) def. Lisa Sutton (LBSU) 6-3, 6-1
Doubles
1. #17 Megan Falcon/Mykala Hedberg (LSU) def. Deborah Armstrong/Lisa Sutton (LBSU) 8-0
2. Anais Dallara/Rachel Manasse (LBSU) def. Hannah Robinson/Whitney Wolf (LSU) 8-6
3. Nicole Kantor/Staten Spencer (LSU) def. Hannah Grady/Julie Luzar (LBSU) 9-8 (6)
Match Notes:
Long Beach State 18-8; National ranking #50
LSU 14-10; National ranking #25
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (1,3,6)