Downed the Bulldogs: Auburn upsets No. 4 Georgia on Senior Day

Downed the Bulldogs: Auburn upsets No. 4 Georgia on Senior DayDowned the Bulldogs: Auburn upsets No. 4 Georgia on Senior Day
Abby Grace Stevens/Auburn Tigers

AUBURN, Ala. – No. 16 Women's tennis upset 4th ranked Georgia by a 4-3 score in the final regular season home match of the season at the Yarbrough Tennis Center on Sunday. With the match tied at three and only one match remaining, fifth-year senior Carolyn Ansari defeated No. 24 Dasha Vidmanova in a dramatic three-set match on court one to give Auburn the win.
 
The team win marks the 10th victory over Georgia in program history. Sunday also was the first time the Tigers defeated a top-4 team since defeating the then-No. 4 Bulldogs in 2017.
 
"I was up big in the second set and she played some good points in crucial moments," said Ansari after the clutch singles victory. "I tried to just stay the course in the third set and started winning those deuce points. This team victory means a lot. I've had so many amazing matches on these courts. I've loved my five years here so for it to end the way it did was good."
 

 
After Adeline Flach and Angella Okutoyi earned a quick 6-1 victory over Guillermina Grant and Mai Nirundorn to start doubles, the Bulldogs got the momentum back by winning court one with the help of four straight game wins.
 
Ansari and Selin Ovunc were tied with Mell Reasco and Anastasiia Lopata 2-2, but dropped the match 6-3 to give Georgia the doubles point.
 
Auburn began singles hot, claiming the opening set on five courts. DJ Bennett won four consecutive games in the middle of her first set to win it 6-2 while Ariana Arseneault and Flach each came back from 3-2 deficits to claim their respective opening sets. Okutoyi won all five service games to win the first set on court four and Ansari took an early 2-0 lead to a first set win on court one
 
DJ Bennett bounced back from her first singles loss in nine matches on Friday with a straight set victory that tied the match at one. The win was Bennett's team-leading 15th dual match win and her seventh singles win over a ranked opponent this season.
 

 
Okutoyi was not far behind her teammate, winning 6-4, 6-4 over Aysegul Mert. In the match on court four, Okutoyi won 85 percent of her service games and four of five break points to claim the victory.
 
Auburn looked to be in total control with Arseneault coming back from dropping the first two games in her second set to defeat 80th ranked Anastasiia Lopata 6-4, 6-3. Arseneault won eight return games in the match and recorded her ninth dual singles win of the season that pushed the Tigers' lead to 3-1.
 
With all three remaining matches entering a third set, Georgia fought back with wins on courts three and six to tie the match at three and leave the outcome up to court one.
 
After dropping a tight second set 7-5, Ansari jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the decisive third set. Vidmanova cut the deficit to 5-3 before Ansari clinched the match for the Tigers with a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 victory. Ansari has now won 11 dual singles matches this season, each of which at the No. 1 position.
 
With the regular season home schedule now complete, Auburn will go on the road to battle rival Alabama on Friday in Tuscaloosa at 5 p.m. CT.
 

 
 
#16 Auburn 4, #4 Georgia 3
 
Singles Results:
1. #18 Carolyn Ansari (AUB) def. #24 Dasha Vidmanova (UGA) 6-4, 5-7, 6-3
2. #62 DJ Bennett (AUB) def. #75 Mell Reasco (UGA) 6-2, 6-1
3. #74 Ariana Arseneault (AUB) def. #80 Anastasiia Lopata (UGA) 6-4, 6-3
4. Angella Okutoyi (AUB) def. Aysegul Mert (UGA) 6-4, 6-4
5. Guillermina Grant (UGA) def. Adeline Flach (AUB) 3-6, 6-0, 6-4
6. #91 Mai Nirundorn (UGA) def. Ali Despain (AUB) 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4
 
Doubles Results:
1. #16 Aysegul Mert/Dasha Vidmanova (UGA) def. #9 Ariana Arseneault/DJ Bennett (AUB) 6-2
2. Adeline Flach/Angella Okutoyi (AUB) def. #35 Guillermina Grant/Mai Nirundorn (UGA) 6-1
3. Mell Reasco/Anastasiia Lopata (UGA) def. Carolyn Ansari/Selin Ovunc (AUB) 6-3
 
Time of match: 3:58; Order of finish: Doubles: 2,1,3; Singles: 2,4,3,5,6,1; Official: Donna Jerome