TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Auburn women's tennis picked up five wins Sunday as their week at the ITA Southern Regional Championships came to a close.
"The development process is never a steady climb," Auburn head coach Caroline Lilley said. "Sometimes when you are climbing a mountain you have to backtrack, endure a plateau, and find a path forward. We saw some really good things this weekend as a coaching staff, and we are ready and excited to improve for the remaining tournaments we have this fall."
Sophomore Ariana Arseneault made the farthest advance in the singles main draw, moving through to the quarterfinals with a 7-5, 6-3 win over LSU's Mia Rabinowitz in the round of 16. She would fall short in her quarterfinal match, however, falling to Alabama's Petra Sedlackova in three sets, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2.
Auburn's three other players in the singles round of 16 came up short. Adeline Flach fell to 22nd-ranked and top-seeded Emma Antonaki of Mississippi State, 7-5, 7-5. Georgie Axon fell by the slimmest of margins in a third-set tiebreaker to LSU's Ena Babic, 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (5). And Carolyn Ansari dropped a three-setter to MSU's Tamara Racine, 1-6, 6-4, 6-4.
In consolation singles matches, the Tigers picked up a pair of wins. Madeline Meredith defeated Tulane's Kristen Borland, 6-1, 6-4, and Yu Chen downed LSU's Nina Geissler, 6-4, 6-4. Anastasia Astakhova came up short to Ole Miss' Elysia Pool, 6-3, 6-4.
Two Tiger teams picked up wins in doubles consolation matches as well. Astakhova and Ansari downed Tulane's Borland and Zhu, 8-3, and Arseneault and Meredith defeated South Alabama's van der Merwe and Aoki, 8-7 (4).
Auburn will await potential at-large or wild card bids into the ITA Fall National Championships, which run Nov. 4-7 in San Diego. The rest of the team will next compete at the ASU Thunderbird Invitational, set for the same weekend in Tempe, Ariz.
For the latest on Auburn women's tennis, follow @AuburnWTennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
2021 ITA Southern Regional Championships
Auburn Results – Sunday, Oct. 17
Singles – Round of 16
Ariana Arseneault (AU) def. Mia Rabinowitz (LSU), 7-5, 6-3
#22 Emma Antonaki (MSU) def. Adeline Flach (AU), 7-5, 7-5
Ena Babic (LSU) def. Georgie Axon (AU), 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (5)
Tamara Racine (MSU) def. #45 Carolyn Ansari (AU), 1-6, 6-4, 6-4
Singles – Quarterfinals
Petra Sedlackova (ALA) def. Ariana Arseneault (AU), 5-7, 6-4, 6-2
Singles – Consolation
Madeline Meredith (AU) def. Kristen Borland (Tulane), 6-1, 6-4
Elysia Pool (OM) def. Anastasia Astakhova (AU), 6-3, 6-4
#116 Yu Chen (AU) def. Nina Geissler (LSU), 6-4, 6-4
Doubles – Consolation
Astakhova/Ansari (AU) def. Borland/Zhu (Tulane), 8-3
Arseneault/Meredith (AU) def. van der Merwe/Aoki (USA), 8-7 (4)
