AUBURN, Ala. – The 25th-ranked Auburn women's tennis team will open its 2019 spring season with four matches this weekend at the Yarbrough Tennis Center. All four matches will be played indoors.
Seven total matches will take place over the weekend. Play begins Saturday morning at 8 a.m. with Auburn taking on Alabama A&M. That will be followed by Alabama A&M vs. Central Arkansas, Auburn vs. Mercer, then Mercer vs. Central Arkansas.
Sunday's play gets underway at 9 a.m. as Auburn faces Central Arkansas. Immediately following that will be Alabama A&M vs. Mercer, then the Tigers take on Mercer to finish out the weekend.
Fans can follow @AuburnWTennis on Twitter for updates on start times throughout the weekend. Live scoring will also be available at AuburnTigers.com. There will be no live video with all matches taking place indoors.
"We've had some really good preseason practices," Auburn head coach Lauren Spencer said. "They've really been working hard these last two weeks, so we're excited to get on the court, see how that practice has paid off and get some matches under our belt."
Auburn returns six letterwinners from the 2018 team that posted a 20-11 overall record (8-5 SEC) and made its sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Tigers finished the 2018 season ranked No. 24 in the final ITA rankings.
"We have a pretty young squad but a lot of talent," Spencer said. "It's great to be able to bring back four of the six starters from last year, plus two seniors at the bottom of the lineup and in doubles. Last year, we just didn't finish the way we wanted to, and we were plagued with injuries.
"Our expectations are to make a really good run in the SEC Championship and then go after a national championship. We just have to hold ourselves to a really high level. I think this group can be a top-10 team. We're still a really young team, but the two seniors we have – Alannah Griffin and Caroline Turner – provide a lot of stability."
Sophomore Jaeda Daniel is the top-ranked singles player for the Tigers headed into the spring season at No. 61 nationally. She picks up right where she left off as she finished her freshman season ranked No. 61 as well with a 24-15 overall record in singles, playing most of her matches at the No. 2 spot.
In doubles, the Tigers will be led into the spring by the team of junior Taylor Russo and freshman Sophia Graver. The duo played three fall tournaments together, posting a 7-3 record and earning a No. 14 national ranking heading into the dual match season. Russo and Graver won the first flight at Auburn's home tournament, the Marliss Gruver Fall Invitational, in October, and earned a berth in the ITA Fall National Championships in November.
For the latest on Auburn Women's Tennis, follow @AuburnWTennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Saturday, Jan. 19
8 a.m. – Auburn vs. Alabama A&M
Followed by – Alabama A&M vs. Central Arkansas
Followed by – Auburn vs. Mercer
Followed by – Central Arkansas vs. Mercer
Sunday, Jan. 20
9 a.m. – Auburn vs. Central Arkansas
Followed by – Alabama A&M vs. Mercer
Followed by – Auburn vs. Mercer
