AUBURN, Ala. – No. 15 Auburn was able to split Sunday's doubleheader after falling to No. 2 North Carolina 6-1 and bouncing back to defeat Samford 7-0.
"We played a lot of tennis today," said Auburn head coach Caroline Lilley. "At the beginning of our first match we were out of sorts and the responsibility for that lies squarely with me. I did not have my team ready to play from the very first point. North Carolina did a great job of setting a tone early and they played some really tough tennis in deciding moments."
Against North Carolina, the 10th nationally ranked Auburn duo of Ariana Arseneault and Carolyn Ansari played an intense back-and-forth battle against North Carolina's Reese Brantmeier and Elizabeth Scotty, but when things were trending the Tigers' way the match was suspended at 4-4 as North Carolina took the doubles point by winning the other two matches.
In singles play, Auburn and North Carolina played all six matches competitively. Freshman Kaitlyn Carnicella scored the lone point for the Tigers in a hard-fought match with the 5th ranked singles player nationally, Abbey Forbes, on court four. The match went to a tiebreaker in both of the first two sets and Carnicella took the 10-point tiebreaker in set three to win the match. The win is the freshman's first collegiate singles win over a ranked opponent.
After falling in a close first set 7-5, Arsenault took the second set from Fiona Crawley, the No. 1 singles player in the country, 6-1 on court one and kept the match close all throughout but lost after an impressive effort by a 7-5, 1-6, 6-2 score. Adeline Flach also took a set from the 48th ranked Reilly Tran on court six before ultimately falling 6-4, 3-6, 6-2.
In Auburn's second match of the day against Samford, Flach and Carnicella set the tone early for Auburn with a quick 6-1 win in their doubles match over Alexis Lopez and Lauren Waddles from Samford on court two. The win marked the seventh win that the pair has earned this season and the first in dual match play.
Arseneault and Ansari again played on court one and were victorious by a 6-2 score to secure the doubles point for the Tigers.
Auburn cruised through singles play against the Bulldogs, as they were able to win all six singles matches in two sets. Ali DeSpain was able to record her first dual match victory as an Auburn Tiger in the afternoon match, as she defeated Samford's Olivia Jablonski 6-2, 6-0.
"The response in singles from every player was a testament to their fight and competitiveness," said Coach Lilley after the match against Samford. "I loved the way we battled and earned our windows. The execution and clarity will continue to improve as we put in the quality work at practice."
"Both Samford and UNC made us better today," the Auburn head coach continued. "Our team is hungry to pursue growth, and excited to move forward with tenacious conviction to be the best we can be each day."
The Tigers' 2023 record is now 2-1 while North Carolina improves to a perfect 7-0 and Samford falls to 1-2.
Auburn will take a few days away from competition before hosting the University of Santa Barbara on Saturday, January 28th at 11:00 a.m. CT. Admission will be free for the match at the Yarbrough Tennis Center.
North Carolina 6, Auburn 1
Singles
#43 Ariana Arseneault (AUB) #1 Fiona Crawley (UNC) 7-5, 1-6, 6-2
#8 Carson Tanguilig (UNC) def. #71 Carolyn Ansari (AUB) 6-3, 7-6 (6)
Reese Brantmeier (UNC) def. #78 DJ Bennett (AUB) 6-4, 6-3
Kaitlyn Carnicella (AUB) def. #5 Abbey Forbes (UNC) 6-7, 7-6 (5), 1-0 (8)
#58 Elizabeth Scotty (UNC) def. Angella Okutoyi (AUB) 6-3, 6-3
#48 Reilly Tran (UNC) def. Adeline Flach (AUB) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
Doubles
#10 Ariana Arseneault/Carolyn Ansari vs. Reese Brantmeier/Elizabeth Scotty 4-4, unfinished
#1 Fiona Crawley/Carson Tanguilig def. Adeline Flach/Angella Okutoyi 6-0
Abbey Forbes/Reilly Tran def. DJ Bennett/Kaitlyn Carnicella 6-1
Time of match: 3:05; Order of finish: Doubles: 2, 3; Singles: 3,5,2,1,6,4 Official: Donna Jerome
Auburn 7, Samford 0
Singles
#43 Ariana Arseneault (AUB) def. Alexis Lopez (SAM) 6-3, 6-0
#71 Carolyn Ansari (AUB) def. Samantha Nanere (SAM) 6-0, 7-5
Kaitlyn Carnicella (AUB) def. Ally Hayduk (SAM) 6-4, 6-1
Angella Okutoyi (AUB) def. Lindsay Song (SAM) 7-6 (1), 6-2
Adeline Flach (AUB) def. Samantha Maras (SAM) 6-2, 6-4
Ali DeSpain (AUB) def. Olivia Jablonski (SAM) 6-2, 6-0
Doubles
#10 Ariana Arseneault/Carolyn Ansari def. Samantha Nanere/Lindsay Song 6-2
Adeline Flach/Kaitlyn Carnicella def. Alexis Lopez/Lauren Waddles 6-1
Angella Okutoyi/Ali DeSpain vs. Olivia Jablonski/Cameron Rogin 3-4, unfinished
Time of match: 2:18; Doubles 2, 1; Singles 1,6,3,5,2,4
