April 8, 2018
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - In a tightly contested match from start to finish, the No. 17 Auburn women's tennis team defeated Arkansas 4-3 on Sunday at the Billingsley Tennis Center.
Doubles competition was back and forth and ultimately came down to the wire. The Razorbacks took the first set with a 6-4 win from Martina Zerulo and Tatum Rice over Auburn's freshman tandem of Jaeda Daniel and Madeline Meredith on court two. Auburn's Andie Dikosavljevic and Alannah Griffin soon responded, however, with a 6-4 win of their own over Arkansas' Agne Cepelyte and Natsuho Arakawa on court three.
As the point came down to the final court, it was fitting that the match had to be decided by a tiebreaker set. In that, Arkansas' Giulia Pairone and Mia Jurasic were able to edge Auburn's Alizee Michaud and Taylor Russo for the point with a 7-6 (3) win on court one.
Singles competition was no different from doubles as it was also neck and neck until the end. Arkansas claimed the first singles point with a 7-5, 6-2 win from Natsuho Arakawa over Auburn's Madeline Meredith on court three.
The Tigers quickly responded though, earning their first two points of the day. No. 39 freshman Jaeda Daniel defeated Arkansas' Mia Jurasic 6-4, 6-3 on court two. Soon after, senior Andie Dikosavljevic took down Arkansas' Tatum Rice 7-5, 6-3 on court four.
Arkansas took back the lead with Martina Zerulo's 6-4, 6-3 win over Auburn's Alannah Griffin, but the Razorbacks did not hold the lead for long. Sophomore Taylor Russo soon evened the score again with a 6-3, 7-5 win over Arkansas' Agne Cepelyte on court five.
Just as doubles came down to the final set, so did singles. The set itself, however, was not as close as Alizee Michaud clinched the match for the Tigers with a 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 win over Arkansas' No. 52 Giulia Pairone on court one.
Michaud's win was her third over a ranked opponent in singles this spring, bumping her to a 14-5 record on the spring season. Daniel's win was her fourth straight in singles, which pushed the Port Charlotte, Fla., native to 15-6 on the spring season. Dikosavljevic's win also moved her to a solid 11-5 record in singles this spring. Perhaps most noteworthy of all, Russo's win allowed her to become the fifth Tiger with double digit singles wins this spring, also giving her a 10-8 record to date.
Auburn is now 18-9 on the season and 6-5 in SEC play. The Tigers' next action will be hosting the regular season finale as they take on Texas A&M and LSU at the Yarbrough Tennis Center.
Auburn will start the weekend by squaring off against No. 33 Texas A&M on Friday, April 13, at 6 p.m. The Tigers will then conclude the weekend by facing No. 37 LSU on Sunday, April 15, at noon for Senior Day.
#17 Auburn 4, Arkansas 3
Singles
1. Alizee Michaud (AUBURN) def. #52 Giulia Pairone (AR) 6-3, 1-6, 6-2
2. #39 Jaeda Daniel (AUBURN) def. Mia Jurasic (AR) 6-4, 6-3
3. Natsuho Arakawa (AR) def. Madeline Meredith (AUBURN) 7-5, 6-2
4. Andie Dikosavljevic (AUBURN) def. Tatum Rice (AR) 7-5, 6-3
5. Taylor Russo (AUBURN) def. Agne Cepelyte (AR) 6-3, 7-5
6. Martina Zerulo (AR) def. Alannah Griffin (AUBURN) 6-4, 6-3
Doubles
1. Giulia Pairone/Mia Jurasic (AR) def. Alizee Michaud/Taylor Russo (AUBURN) 7-6 (7-3)
2. Martina Zerulo/Tatum Rice (AR) def. Jaeda Daniel/Madeline Meredith (AUBURN) 6-4
3. Andie Dikosavljevic/Alannah Griffin (AUBURN) def. Agne Cepelyte/Natsuho Arakawa (AR) 6-4
Order of finish: Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (3,2,4,6,5,1)