Bryan-College Station, Texas – The LSU women’s tennis team (8-4, 2-3 SEC) was defeated by the No. 2 Texas A&M Aggies (16-1, 5-0 SEC) by a score of 5-2 on Friday night at the Mitchell Tennis Center.
Taylor’s Thoughts
“We’re disappointed to walk away with a defeat today,” head coach Taylor Fogleman said. “Texas A&M is one of the best teams in the country, but we met their energy on the court today and had many opportunities. While we are disappointed in a defeat, today showed that we’re capable of playing with any team in the country and we’re only continuing to improve as the season goes on.”
Doubles Results
Jayci Goldsmith and Salma Ewing gave the Aggies a strong start in doubles by taking down Anastasiya Komar and Safiya Carrington by a score of 6-2 at the top doubles court.
Texas A&M clinched the match with a narrow 7-5 win from Jeannette Mireles and Gianna Pielet over Maggie Cubitt and Nikita Vishwase at the No. 3 court. The Tiger duo battled back from a deficit, but narrowly fell short in the final two games and were defeated.
Singles Results
No. 26 Komar got the Tigers on the board with a strong straight set win in singles over Salma Ewing at the No. 2 singles court. Komar took the lead in the first set and went on to win 6-3 before only dropping two games in the second to win 6-2 and secure her court. The win means Komar moves to 11-0 in dual matches this season and 25-5 on the overall season.
The Aggies retook the lead at 2-1 after No. 90 Goldsmith edged Carrington at the No. 4 spot. Goldsmith took the first set, 6-3, but trailed in the second set after a few games. Goldsmith battled back to tie the match at 6-6 and force a tiebreaker, which Goldsmith edged out by a score of 8-6.
In a Top 25 battle at the top singles court, No. 5 Mary Stoiana defeated No. 17 Kylie Collins. Stoiana battled back from a deficit in the first set to win 6-3 and repeated the feat in the second set as she overcame a slow start to win 6-3 and give Texas A&M a 3-1 lead in the match.
Texas A&M clinched the match at the No. 6 court, where No. 83-ranked Gianna Pielet defeated Mia Rabinowitz. The two players split 12 games in the first set at 6-6 and required a tiebreaker to decide it. In the tiebreaker, Pielet defeated Rabinowitz 7-4 and took the lead. In the second set, Pielet came out on top by a score of 6-3 to give the Aggies the clinching point.
The fifth and final point for the Aggies came from the No. 3 singles court, where No. 106 Mia Kupres came from behind to defeat Nina Geissler. Geissler struck first in the match as she held on to beat Kupres, 7-5. Kupres struck back in the second set and won 6-1 to force the court into a third set. The Texas A&M player only dropped one game in the final set as she won 6-1 and made it 5-1 in the team match.
The Tigers claimed the final point of the night when Vishwase defeated No. 80 Daria Smetannikov in three sets. Vishwase won the first set, 7-5, before Smetannikov equalized with a 6-4 win of her own in set two to extend the match. In the third set, the two players traded games back and forth before Vishwase outlasted her opponent to win 6-4 and make the team match finish at 5-2. For Vishwase, the win is her first in SEC play in her career as well as her first ranked singles win.
Up Next
LSU returns to the LSU Tennis Complex for a non-conference match against Alcorn State at 11 a.m. CT on Monday, March 20.
Follow Us
For more information on the LSU women’s tennis program follow the Tigers on Twitter @lsuwten , on Instagram @LSUWTen , and on www.Facebook.com/lsuwten.
#2 Texas A&M 5, #38 LSU 2
Singles competition
- #5 Mary Stoiana (TAM) def. Kylie Collins (LSU) 6-3, 6-3
- Anastasiya Komar (LSU) def. Salma Ewing (TAM) 6-3, 6-2
- #106 Mia Kupres (TAM) def. Nina Geissler (LSU) 5-7, 6-1, 6-1
- #90 Jayci Goldsmith (TAM) def. Safiya Carrington (LSU) 6-3, 7-6 (8-6)
- Nikita Vishwase (LSU) def. #80 Daria Smetannikov (TAM) 7-5, 4-6, 6-4
- #83 Gianna Pielet (TAM) def. Mia Rabinowitz (LSU) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3
Doubles competition
- #47 Salma Ewing/Jayci Goldsmith (TAM) def. Anastasiya Komar/Safiya Carrington (LSU) 6-2
- Mia Kupres/Mary Stoiana (TAM) vs. Kylie Collins/Nina Geissler (LSU) 6-6 (1-1), unfinished
- Jeanette Mireles/Gianna Pielet (TAM) def. Maggie Cubitt/Nikita Vishwase (LSU) 7-5
Match Notes:
LSU 8-4, 2-3 SEC; National ranking #38
Texas A&M 16-1, 5-0 SEC; National ranking #2
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (2,4,1,6,3,5)