No. 29 Auburn swept a home men's tennis Sunday, defeating No. 24 Texas A&M by a 4-2 score and then downing Alabama A&M 7-0 in the nightcap.
"This was our first Top 25 win of the season and our guys deserve it," Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said of the victory over the No. 24 Aggies. "And it was great to get everyone in the lineup between the two matches.
"The Texas A&M win was a response from the match Friday, where we were disappointed in the fight. On Friday, when things got tough, our emotions dropped.
"I'm so proud today of our guys, their fight overall. They had to fight through those first sets in three tiebreakers, and Jan fought tooth and nail. When our guys are fighting for every opportunity, our team is better, and they find additional chances. The team that keeps fighting is usually more successful and we did that today."
Doubles gave the Tigers a huge boost in the early going. Jan Galka and Tyler Stice wasted no time in posting a 6-3 win for Auburn over Pierce Rollins and Giulio Perego, but after the Aggies claimed court three by a 6-4 score, the focus of doubles moved to court one, where Auburn's Tad Maclean and Finn Murgett came from behind to force a tiebreaker.
Murgett and Maclean carried that momentum into a 7-5 tiebreaker advantage over Noah Schachter and Kenner Taylor, taking their match 7-6 and capturing the doubles point for Auburn for the 17th time this spring.
In singles, the Tigers took four first sets, three of them by tiebreaker. Freshman Will Nolan scored first in singles for Auburn, with a 7-6 (0), 6-3 victory over Pierce Rollins, but wins on courts four and two for the Aggies tied the team score at 2-2.
Playing on court one, Tyler Stice, who had won his first set tiebreaker 10-8, took the second set from No. 56 Noah Schachter as well by a 6-3 mark, and then Finn Murgett, playing on court six, posted a three-set win over Luke Casper by a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 score to clinch the match for the Tigers.
Against Alabama A&M, the Tigers had some changes from their usual lineup but the result was the same in doubles. Maxwell Giddens and Josh Raab posted a 6-1 victory on court three, and then Raul Dobai and Jackson Ross clinched the point with a 6-2 win on court two.
In singles, the Tigers got wins from Jackson Ross on court three, Maxwell Giddens on court six and the match clincher from Jan Galka on court one. Josh Raab, Spencer Gray and Will Nolan posted wins after the team match was clinched.
Auburn is 17-5 for the spring season, 5-3 in SEC play and ranked No. 29 in the latest ITA team ratings and No. 25 in the Tennis Channel/USTA Top 25. No. 24 Texas A&M is now 18-10 overall and 5-3 in SEC action. Alabama A&M is 3-12 for the spring season.
The Tigers conclude the home portion of the regular season next weekend, hosting No. 10 South Carolina Friday at 3 p.m. and celebrating Senior Day for Tad Maclean Sunday with a pair of matches against No. 1 Florida at noon and versus Samford at 5 p.m.
All Auburn home tennis action is at the Yarbrough Tennis Center (1717 Richland Road, Auburn) and admission is free.
#29 Auburn 4, #24 Texas A&M 2
Singles
#91 Tyler Stice (AU) def. #56 Noah Schachter (TAMU) 7-6 (8), 6-3
Raphael Perot (TAMU) def. #115 Jan Galka (AU) 6-4, 6-4
#111 Tad Maclean (AU) v Guido Marson (TAMU) 7-6 (2), 5-4 unfinished
Giulio Perego (TAMU) def. Raul Dobai (AU) 6-3, 6-4
Will Nolan (AU) def. Pierce Rollins (TAMU) 7-6 (0), 6-3
Finn Murgett (AU) def. Luke Casper (TAMU) 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
Doubles
#60 Murgett/Maclean (AU) def. Kenner Taylor/Schachter (TAMU) 7-6 (7-5)
Galka/Stice (AU) def. Rollins/Perego (TAMU) 6-3
Stefan Storch/Austin Abbrat (TAMU) def. Dobai/Jackson Ross (AU) 6-4
Time of match: 2:45; Order of finish: Doubles: 2,3,1; Singles: 4,5,2,
#29 Auburn 7, Alabama A&M 0
Singles
#115 Jan Galka (AU) def. Rodrigo Arana Rios (AAMU) 6-3, 6-1
Will Nolan (AU) def. Natiphat Mulada (AAMU) 6-0, 7-6 (3)
Jackson Ross (AU) def. Divesh Gahlot (AAMU) 6-1, 6-1
Spencer Gray (AU) def. Torres Ramis (AAMU) 6-1, 6-4
Josh Raab (AU) def. Freddie Lawrence (AAMU) 6-3, 6-2
Maxwell Giddens (AU) def. Cheng Chang Yang (AAMU) 6-0, 6-2
Doubles
Finn Murgett/Will Nolan (AU) v Gahlot/Vence Ntcha (AAMU) 5-2 unfinished
Raul Dobai/Jackson Ross (AU) def. Arana Ross/Cheng Chang (AAMU) 6-2
Maxwell Giddens/Josh Raab (AU) def. Lawrence/German Ruiz Crespo (AAMU) 6-1
Time of match: 2:10; Order of finish: Doubles: 3,2; Singles: 3,6,1,5,4,2
