PALO ALTO, Calif. — The 25th-ranked LSU women’s tennis team’s bid to snap No. 13 Stanford’s 150-match home win streak came up short as the Lady Tigers fell, 4-0, Sunday at the Taube Family Tennis Center.
LSU (14-11) fell behind 1-0 after the Cardinal captured the doubles point. LSU’s 17th-ranked Megan Falcon and Mykala Hedberg fell 8-2 to eighth-ranked Hilary Barte and Lindsay Burdette on court one, and Nicole Kantor and Staten Spencer dropped their match on court three to Logan Hansen and Veronica Li 8-3.
The Lady Tigers could not muster a rally in singles as Stanford (19-4) added three victories to clinch the match. On court two, Hedberg fell to No. 88 Burdette 6-1, 6-1.
After falling in the first set 6-1 on court three, Whitney Wolf captured four of the first five games in the second set to go up 4-1, but Stanford’s 73rd-ranked Jessica Nguyen rallied to take the set 6-4 and give the Cardinal a 3-0 lead.
On court four, Kantor moved out to an early 2-0 lead in the first set, but she could never find a rhythm against Li, who battled to take a 6-3, 6-2 victory and give Stanford the win.
When the match was clinched, Spencer was up a set on court six as she led Hansen 7-5, 0-3.
“This was a tough venue to compete in. Stanford has an outstanding program, and they played really well today,” LSU head coach Tony Minnis said. “The environment was extremely tough and our kids gave a good effort, but today Stanford was just the better team. I felt like we had a solid season. I’m proud of these kids with what they have overcome. To finish in the top 25 in the nation considering some of the adversity we have dealt with shows the resiliency of this team.”
LSU earned a trip to the NCAA second round in back-to-back years for the first time since 1999-2000, and even though the team season is finished two Lady Tigers will continue to compete in the NCAA Individual Championships.
Seniors Falcon and Hedberg will represent LSU in the NCAA Doubles Championships, while Falcon will once again compete in the NCAA Singles Championships in College Station, Texas beginning May 20 at Texas A&M’s George P. Mitchell Tennis Center.
#13 Stanford 4, #25 LSU 0
May 10, 2009 at Palo Alto, Calif. (Taube Family Tennis Center)
Singles
1. #13 Megan Falcon (LSU) vs. #7 Hilary Barte (STAN) 3-6, 4-3, unfinished
2. #88 Lindsay Burdette (STAN) def. Mykala Hedberg (LSU) 6-1, 6-1
3. #73 Jessica Nguyen (STAN) def. Whitney Wolf (LSU) 6-1, 6-4
4. Veronica Li (STAN) def. Nicole Kantor (LSU) 6-3, 6-2
5. Hannah Robinson (LSU) vs. #101 Carolyn McVeigh (STAN) 2-6, 2-5, unfinished
6. Staten Spencer (LSU) vs. Logan Hansen (STAN) 7-5, 0-3, unfinished
Doubles
1. #8 Hilary Barte/Lindsay Burdette (STAN) def. #17 Megan Falcon/Mykala Hedberg (LSU) 8-2
2. #38 Carolyn McVeigh/Jessica Nguyen (STAN) vs. Hannah Robinson/Whitney Wolf (LSU) 7-3, unfinished
3. Logan Hansen/Veronica Li (STAN) def. Nicole Kantor/Staten Spencer (LSU) 8-3
Match Notes:
Stanford 19-4; National ranking #13
LSU 14-11; National ranking #25
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (2,3,4)