In a match that featured four tiebreakers, Tyler Stice captured a straight set win in a tiebreaker to clinch a 4-2 road victory over Florida State for Auburn men's tennis Friday evening at the Scott Speicher Memorial Tennis Center in Tallahassee, Fla. The Tigers' win snapped a 13-match home win streak for the Seminoles.
"This was a great win for our guys," Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said. "Our team had a chip on its shoulder from last year's defeat and took the court ready for a battle today.
"Our doubles continue to be a strong position for us, and we were able to keep the momentum into the singles with four first-set wins. We were able to get off in two sets on courts six and four, which gave great momentum to the remaining matches."
Auburn won the doubles point for the fifth time this season. Tad Maclean and Finn Murgett took care of business on court one, defeating FSU's Loris Pourroy and Marcus Walters by a 6-4 count, and then Tom Wright and Maxwell Giddens clinched the team doubles point for the Tigers with a 6-4 victory over Chase Wood and Bryn Nahrung on court two.
Auburn added the first point in singles when Spencer Gray defeated Nahrung 6-2, 7-5 in play on court six. The Seminoles won the matches on courts one and three, but Maclean added another point for Auburn with a 7-5, 6-2 victory on court four over Andreja Petrovic.
Playing on court two, Tyler Stice took his first set 6-3 over Richard Thongoana. The Seminole took a 6-5 lead in the second set before Stice tied the set 6-6 and won the tiebreaker 7-4 to clinch the team victory.
The Tigers will play Miami Saturday morning at 10 in a neutral-site match at the Scott Speicher Memorial Tennis Center in Tallahassee, Fla.
The Tigers are now 3-3; Florida State is 3-2. This weekend is Auburn's last tune-up before SEC play begins February 19 at South Carolina.
Auburn 4, Florida State 2
Singles
Loris Pourroy (FSU) def. Tim Dollman (AU) 7-6, 6-2
Tyler Stice (AU) def. Richard Thongoana (FSU) 6-3, 7-6
Marcus Walters (FSU) def. Jan Galka (AU) 6-1, 7-6
Tad Maclean (AU) def. Andreja Petrovic (FSU) 7-5, 6-2
Maxwell Giddens (AU) v Chase Wood (FSU) 7-6, 2-5 unfinished
Spencer Gray (AU) def. Bryn Nahrung (FSU) 6-2, 7-5
Doubles
Tad Maclean/Finn Murgett (AU) def. Loris Pourroy/Marcus Walters (FSU) 6-4
Tom Wright/Maxwell Giddens (AU) def. Chase Wood/Bryn Nahrung (FSU) 6-4
Jan Galka/Tyler Stice (AU) v Richard Thongoana/Andreja Petrovic (FSU) 3-5 unfinished
Order of finish: Doubles: 1,2; Singles: 6,1,4,3,2