Auburn battled close in singles but No. 20 South Carolina opened the SEC season with a 5-2 victory Friday at the Carolina Tennis Center in Columbia, S.C.
The match involved seven tiebreakers and four of the singles matches went three sets, but the Gamecocks, which captured the doubles point with wins on courts three and one, won the first three decisions in singles to clinch the match.
After taking the first set 7-6, Auburn's Spencer Gray picked up a win in a third set tiebreaker 10-7 on court six to put the Tigers' first point on the scoreboard. Tad Maclean, who took all three sets on court four to tiebreakers, fell 14-10 in the deciding stanza.
On court two, Auburn's Tyler Stice won the first set 6-3 over No. 81 Raphael Lambling, and playing out a full third set, Stice took the tiebreaker 7-5 to win that match.
The Tigers are now 3-5. South Carolina is 5-2. Next up, Auburn travels to Gainesville, Fla., for a Sunday match with No. 11 Florida (4-1) at 11 a.m. CT at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
The Tigers open SEC play at home on Friday, February 26, hosting Vanderbilt at 1 p.m. All Auburn home tennis action is at the Yarbrough Tennis Center (1717 Richland Road, Auburn). Fans wearing face coverings are welcome to attend all matches played outdoors; fans may want to bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating to remain socially distanced. If weather moves the match indoors, only participants and officials will be admitted.
South Carolina 5, Auburn 2
Singles
#32 Daniel Rodrigues (USC) def. Tim Dollman (AU) 6-3, 6-4
Tyler Stice (AU) def. #81 Raphael Lambling (USC) 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5)
Toby Samuel (USC) def. Jan Galka (AU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
Phillip Jordan (USC) def. Tad Maclean (AU) 7-6 (7-4), 6-7 (8-6), 1-0 (14-10)
Jake Beasley (USC) def. Maxwell Giddens (AU) 6-3, 6-1
Spencer Gray (AU) def. Beau Pelletier (USC) 7-6 (9-7), 6-7 (8-6), 1-0 (10-7)
Doubles
#44 Daniel Rodrigues/Connor Thomson (USC) def. Tad Maclean/Finn Murgett (AU) 6-2
Tom Wright/Maxwell Giddens (AU) v #59 Raphael Lambling/Phillip Jordan (USC) 2-5 unfinished
Jake Beasley/Toby Samuel (USC) def. Jan Galka/Tyler Stice (AU) 6-0
Time of match: 3:32; Order of finish: Doubles: 3,1; Singles: 5,1,3,6,2