OXFORD, Miss. – No. 18 Women's tennis halted a two-match skid with a 5-2 victory over 33rd ranked Ole Miss on Friday afternoon at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center. The Tigers were aided by a stellar start to the match with a quick doubles point win followed by four opening set wins to begin singles play.
"Doubles has really turned around and continues to be a great start for us to get into the match," Auburn interim head coach Lester Cook said after the win. "The girls played smart tennis tonight and played the big points well, which was the ultimate difference between winning and losing this match."
Auburn started the match strong in doubles, as Ariana Arseneault and DJ Bennett rode an early 3-1 lead to a win over No. 64 Briana Crowley and Ava Hrastar 6-3 on the top court. The win marks the 9th ranked Auburn duo's seventh dual match victory of the season.
On court two, Selin Ovunc and Carolyn Ansari also jumped out to an early 3-1 lead before Ole Miss' Anaelle Leclecq and Ludmila Kareisova cut the deficit to 4-3. Ovunc and Ansari then won the next two games to claim the match 6-3 and clinch the doubles point for Auburn. Ansari also reached a milestone with the win, as it marked her 75th career doubles victory.
The Tigers continued their momentum in singles, claiming an opening set win on each of the top four courts at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center. Ansari and Arseneault each claimed first set victories thanks to early set leads, Bennett won three consecutive games after being tied at three with Briana Crowley to earn the first set and Ovunc came back from a 4-2 deficit to win the opening set in a tiebreaker against Anaelle Leclercq.
After trailing the second set 5-2, Bennett mounted an astonishing comeback to win the match in straight sets 6-3, 7-5. The win marked the sophomore's 13th singles dual match victory of the season and her 23rd overall. A few moments later, Ole Miss responded with a straight set win on court five to cut Auburn's lead to 2-1.
On court one, Carolyn Ansari finished off a 6-1, 7-5 win over Ava Hrastar after trailing the second set 5-4. The win improved Ansari's overall singles record to 15-9 this season and moved the Tigers' lead to 3-1 with one singles win separating them from a team victory.
Ole Miss began to take the momentum in the match, forcing a third set on courts two and four. On court six, Ali DeSpain won her second set over Rachel Krzyzak 6-0 to force a third set before ultimately dropping the match.
With two matches remaining, Arseneault dominated her third set over Ludmila Kareisova to win the match 6-1, 6-7 (4), 6-1 to clinch the team win for Auburn. After the team win was secured, Ovunc prevailed in a third set tiebreaker on court four to win 7-6 (4), 2-6, 7-6 (2).
Auburn will remain in the state of Mississippi for its next match against Mississippi State in Starkville on Sunday. The match is scheduled to begin at noon CT where live video and live scoring will be available online at hailstate.com.
#18 Auburn 5, #33 Ole Miss 2
Singles Results:
1. #18 Carolyn Ansari (AUB) def. Ava Hrastar (OM) 6-1, 7-5
2. #74 Ariana Arseneault (AUB) def. Ludmila Kareisova (OM) 6-1, 6-7 (4-7), 6-1
3. #62 DJ Bennett (AUB) def. Briana Crowley (OM) 6-3, 7-5
4. Selin Ovunc (AUB) def. Anaelle Leclercq (OM) 7-6 (7-4), 2-6, 7-6 (7-2)
5. Emma Kette (OM) def. Adeline Flach (AUB) 6-4, 6-3
6. Rachel Krzyzak (OM) def. Ali DeSpain (AUB) 6-0, 0-6, 6-1
Doubles Results:
1. #9 Ariana Arseneault/DJ Bennett (AUB) def. #64 Briana Crowley/Ava Hrastar (OM) 6-3
2. Selin Ovunc/Carolyn Ansari (AUB) def. Anaelle Leclercq/Ludmila Kareisova (OM) 6-3
3. Kelsey Mize/Lucie Devier (OM) def. Adeline Flach/Ali DeSpain (AUB) 4-3, unfinished
Order of finish: Doubles: 1,2; Singles: 3,5,1,6,2,4