No. 9 Auburn takes down No. 6 Tennessee on the road

Box Score
No. 9 Auburn takes down No. 6 Tennessee on the roadNo. 9 Auburn takes down No. 6 Tennessee on the road
David Gray/Auburn Tigers

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 9 women’s tennis recorded its fifth win over a top-10 opponent this season on Sunday, defeating sixth-ranked Tennessee 4-2 at the Goodfriend Tennis Center in Knoxville. Auburn played its second indoor match of the weekend due to rain and won behind a doubles point and singles victories from Angella Okutoyi, Alice Battesti and Ava Hrastar.

“Big road win for us, really good doubles point and found a way to win three singles matches,” Auburn head coach Jordan Szabo said after the victory. “Tennessee is a tough place to play, and playing inside in front of a big crowd on senior day wasn’t easy. Weird match with some lopsided scorelines. If we can get all positions competing at a high level at the same time, we will be scary for anyone down the stretch. Need to get back to work Tuesday and get ready for the last regular-season weekend of the year.”

The Tigers avenged their two losses to the Volunteers last season — one in the regular season at home and one in the SEC Championship quarterfinals in Athens, Georgia.

Auburn’s Okutoyi and Merna Refaat defeated No. 38 Catherine Aulia and Leyla Britez Risso 6-4 for their third ranked doubles win of the season. At No. 3 doubles, the Auburn duo of Ava Esposito and Maria Garcia jumped out to an early 2-0 lead over Conley Raidt and Saray Yli-Piipari and went on to win 6-3, clinching a crucial doubles point for the Tigers.

Tennessee responded with a straight-sets singles win on the top court, where No. 7 Elza Tomase defeated No. 3 DJ Bennett to tie the team score at one. The Volunteers then picked up another quick straight-sets win at No. 5 singles to take the lead in the match.

Okutoyi wasted no time getting hot in her match at No. 2 singles against No. 34 Aulia, winning each of the first four games of the opening set before taking it 6-1. She went on to dominate the second set by the same score for her 23rd overall singles win and 17th dual-match singles win of the season.

With the first set on court six between Auburn’s Battesti and Tennessee’s Yli-Piipari tied at four, Battesti claimed each of the next two games to win the set 6-4. The Auburn freshman, who clinched the team victory with a singles win on Friday, won the opening two games of the second set and went on to win it convincingly, 6-1, to give the Tigers a 3-2 lead and put them one singles win away from victory.

With the first set tied at four at No. 3 singles, Hrastar earned a break over No. 69 Britez Risso and held serve in the next game to claim a 6-4 opening-set win. The two traded games in the second set until it reached a tiebreaker, which Hrastar won 7-4 to clinch the upset for Auburn.

The win improves the Tigers’ record to 20-5 overall and 9-4 in SEC play. Auburn’s victory also had major implications for seeding in the upcoming SEC Championship, as it, Tennessee, LSU, Vanderbilt and Oklahoma are now tied for third in the league.

Auburn has now earned 20 wins in a season for the eighth time in program history. The program record for most wins in a season is 24, set in 2016.

Up next, Auburn will return home for its final two matches of the regular season against Ole Miss on Friday and No. 10 LSU on Sunday.

 

#9 Auburn 4, #6 Tennessee 2

Singles Results:

  1. #7 Elza Tomase (TENN) def. #3 DJ Bennett (AUB) 6-0, 6-1
  2. #74 Angella Okutoyi (AUB) def. #34 Catherine Aulia (TENN) 6-1, 6-1
  3. #86 Ava Hrastar (AUB) def. #69 Leyla Britez Risso (TENN) 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
  4. Vanesa Suarez (TENN) vs. #48 Merna Refaat (AUB) 5-7, 6-3, 1-1, unfinished
  5. Conley Raidt (TENN) def. Ava Esposito (AUB) 6-0, 6-3
  6. Alice Battesti (AUB) def. Saray Yli-Piipari (TENN) 6-4, 6-1

Doubles Results:

  1. #50 Elza Tomase/Maeve Thornton (TENN) vs. #21 DJ Bennett/Ava Hrastar (AUB) 4-4, unfinished
  2. Angella Okutoyi/Merna Refaat (AUB) def. #38 Catherine Aulia/Leyla Britez Risso (TENN) 6-4
  3. Ava Esposito/Maria Garcia (AUB) def. Conley Raidt/Saray Yli-Piipari (TENN) 6-3

 

Time of match: 3:03; Order of finish: Doubles: 2,3; Singles: 1,5,2,6,3