AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn women's tennis student-athletes Carolyn Ansari and Selin Ovunc were named to the 2021 SEC All-Newcomer Team, the league office announced this week.
Ansari, a sophomore from Greensboro, N.C., put together a stellar sophomore campaign playing primarily at the No. 2 and No. 3 positions during the spring. She had a 14-3 record in dual matches and was 16-10 overall. Moving up to the No. 2 position for postseason play, she won all three matches she played at that spot, including a pair of wins over opponents from Oklahoma State and Florida State in the NCAA Tournament. For the season, Ansari had four victories over ranked opponents, including three in the top-50. She was ranked as high as No. 70 in the ITA singles rankings.
Ovunc, who came to Auburn from Ankara, Turkey, played every match in the spring at the No. 1 spot, going 8-9 in dual matches and 15-11 overall. Ranked as high as No. 57 in singles during the regular season, Ovunc picked up four wins at the top spot in SEC regular-season play and one in the SEC Tournament. Selected to the NCAA Singles Championships, Ovunc earned All-America status by advancing to the Round of 16; in the first round, she defeated the highest-ranked opponent of her career in No. 5 Kenya Jones of Georgia Tech.
Ansari and Ovunc also played together in doubles the last few weeks of the season, going 4-4 at the No. 2 spot. Three of those wins came in SEC play; a fourth came in the NCAA Tournament against Oklahoma State.
Both players were named to the All-SEC Second Team last month. The All-Newcomer Team is a 2021-specific team designed to honor student-athletes who were freshmen during the canceled 2020 spring season.
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2021 SEC All-Newcomer Team
Carolyn Ansari, Auburn
Selin Ovunc, Auburn
Lea Ma, Georgia
Safiya Carrington, LSU
Bronte Murgett, Missouri
Carly Briggs, Tennessee
Marcella Cruz, Vanderbilt