COLUMBIA, S.C. — No. 24 LSU fell to No. 6 Georgia, 4-0, in the semifinal of the SEC Tournament Saturday at the Columbia Tennis Center. LSU dropped to 19-10 on the year while Georgia improved to 20-5.
The Lady Tigers leave the SEC Tournament with the biggest win for the program under third-year head coach Julia Sell. The Lady Tigers reached just the third semifinal in school history after defeating No. 7 Texas A&M on Friday.
“The Tiger nation should be proud of the effort our girls showed today,” Sell said. “They gave all they could and just didn’t have enough gas to get the win. Georgia is such a strong and powerful team and made us use our legs. They came out aggressive and got us on our heels from the beginning.”
LSU couldn’t gain any momentum in the match as the Bulldogs took the doubles point. Joana Vale Costa and Noel Scott dropped court one, 8-0, and Skylar Kuykendall and Abby Owens fell 8-1 on court two.
Owens was the lone Lady Tiger to win a set. The junior took the first set over Kennedy Shaffer, 6-1, and led the second 3-2 but her match went unfinished on court three.
Ella Taylor dropped her first set to Mariana Gould on court five, 6-2. The junior also fought back in the second set but her court went unfinished as she led 5-2.
Skylar Holloway fell to No. 81 Hanna King 6-1, 6-4 on court six in the first completed match.
No. 69 Ellen Perez defeated No. 60 Skylar Kuykendall 6-3, 6-4 to give the Bulldogs a 3-0 lead. It was just the fifth loss for Kuykendall this season.
Lauren Herring defeated Joana Vale Costa 6-3, 6-1 on court one to clinch the match for Georgia.
LSU returns home for three weeks off before competing in the NCAA Tournament beginning Friday, May 8.
“I’m excited to get the girls home and get some rest this week both physically and mentally,” Sell said. “It’s been a long season but I’m excited to return in three weeks for the NCAA Tournament.”
For more information on the program, follow the Lady Tigers on Twitter @lsuwten and @LSUJuliaSell, on Instagram @LSUWTen and onwww.Facebook.com/lsuwten.
#6 (2 seed) Georgia 4, #24 (6 seed) LSU 0
April 18, 2015 at Columbia, S.C.
(Carolina Tennis Center)
Singles competition
1. #7 Lauren Herring (UGA) def. #29 Joana Vale Costa (LSU) 6-3, 6-1
2. #69 Ellen Perez (UGA) def. #60 Skylar Kuykendall (LSU) 6-3, 6-4
3. #46 Kennedy Shaffer (UGA) vs. Abigail Owens (LSU) 1-6, 2-3, unfinished
4. #83 Caroline Brinson (UGA) vs. Noel Scott (LSU) 6-4, 3-1, unfinished
5. #83 Mariana Gould (UGA) vs. Ella Taylor (LSU) 6-2, 2-5, unfinished
6. #81 Hannah King (UGA) def. Skylar Holloway (LSU) 6-1, 6-4
Doubles competition
1. #19 Lauren Herring/Ellen Perez (UGA) def. #33 Joana Vale Costa/Noel Scott (LSU) 8-1
2. #24 Silvia Garcia/Kennedy Shaffer (UGA) def. Skylar Kuykendall/Abigail Owens (LSU) 8-0
3. Laura Patterson/Hannah King (UGA) vs. Skylar Holloway/Amanda Atanasson (LSU) 7-1, unfinished
Match Notes:
(6) LSU 19-10, 7-6 SEC; National ranking #24
(2) Georgia 20-5, 11-2 SEC; National ranking #6
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2); Singles (6,2,1)
SEC Tournament – Semifinals