AUBURN, Ala. – No. 15 Auburn will host Vanderbilt and Alabama A&M in a doubleheader on Sunday. The first match against Vanderbilt will be at noon CT while the second match against Alabama A&M is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. CT.
The Tigers enter the doubleheader after splitting last weekend's road matches by defeating No. 4 South Carolina and falling to No. 22 Florida. The big win over the Gamecocks helped move Auburn up three spots in the latest ITA team rankings that were announced on Tuesday.
"I don't think when I first came to Auburn there was a rivalry between Auburn and Vanderbilt, but with me being from Vanderbilt, it has become kind of a rivalry," Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said about the Commodores. "Some of the guys on the Vanderbilt team want to beat us for that reason of me playing there, and a lot of our guys want to beat that team. On paper right now, they're not having a great year from a rankings standpoint, but you look at the matches they've played in the SEC and how many they're losing 4-3, we can't overlook anybody ever. From here on out, all of those teams will be coming for us and we have to be ready for that."
Vanderbilt will come into the match with a 7-12 overall record and a 2-6 record in the SEC. The Commodores are coming off of a victory, as they defeated Alabama on Friday by a 6-1 score. Freshman Nathan Cox has recently been moved to the top of the Vanderbilt singles lineup and holds a 17-18 overall record and a 7-11 record in dual matches this season.
Slim Troost and Jeremie Casabon are the Commodores' lone ranked doubles team, as they are 35th in the nation. Troost and Casabon will enter Sunday's match with a 14-5 overall record and a 7-3 record in dual matches.
Auburn will also host Alabama A&M in an in-state matchup later in the day on Sunday. The Aggies currently hold a 3-8 overall record, but are 3-1 in SWAC matches. Alabama A&M's hottest doubles team is Chetanna Amadike and Yin Chih Lan, who have a 3-2 dual match record and have won each of their last three matches.
Auburn students are encouraged to attend Sunday's initial match against Vanderbilt for a chance to win gift cards from either Hamilton's, Bow & Arrow, Taco Mama, Publix, Moon Golf, The Locker Room, or Behind the Glass. Kona Ice will also be served during the match from noon to 1 p.m. CT. Live video and live scoring of both matches will be available online at AuburnTigers.com.
