AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn is set to play its first two home matches in SEC play over the weekend, hosting Vanderbilt on Friday at 2 p.m. CT, Georgia at 1 p.m. CT on Sunday and Tennessee State at 5 p.m. on Sunday.
“It’ll start with the doubles, that where we’ve had the most success” Auburn head coach Bobby Reynolds said about the keys to success this weekend. “This weekend, we got off to a couple of slow starts which put us behind early with scoreboard pressure. I’m excited to be back at home where we’re usually successful. Being outdoors, having the crowd and just the feeling of being at home will be a big help this weekend.”
Auburn will enter the weekend with a 7-2 overall record and look to bounce back from back-to-back road losses at Florida and South Carolina during the first weekend of conference play. Auburn freshman Alex Frusina has solidified himself at the No. 2 singles position and holds a 7-1 dual match singles record this spring. On Saturday, Frusina earned a 6-3, 6-4 win over Lucas Da Silva of South Carolina. Auburn holds an ITA national team ranking of No. 45 as of the latest rankings that were released on Tuesday.
Vanderbilt will enter the second weekend of SEC matches with an 8-3 record. The Commodores were shut out by No. 4 Texas on Saturday, then bounced back with a 4-3 comeback win over LSU in Baton Rouge on Monday. Vanderbilt was ranked No. 32 in the latest ITA national team rankings that were released on Tuesday. Nathan Cox is the only Commadore ranked in singles at No. 98, while he and Michael Ross are ranked in doubles at No. 87.
After the SEC home opener, Auburn will host Georgia, ranked No. 54, on Sunday. The Tigers made history last season when they defeated Georgia 4-3 for the fifth time in program history and the first time since 2010. The win marked the first time Auburn had defeated the Bulldogs in Athens since 1994.
Manuel Diaz retired after his 36th season as the Georgia head coach in 2024 and was replaced by associate head coach Jamie Hunt this season. In Hunt’s first season at the helm, the Bulldogs hold a 7-4 record and won their first SEC match of the season against No. 16 Tennessee on Monday by a 4-2 score.
Georgia senior Thomas Paulsell had a strong fall season for the Bulldogs, qualifying for the NCAA Singles Championship through ITA Conference Masters and earning ITA Singles All-American status by reaching the round of 16 at the NCAA Singles Championship in November. Paulsell is currently ranked No. 20 in singles and No. 18 in doubles with partner Ryan Colby.
Attendance at all three matches at the Yarbrough Tennis Center will be free. Fans at Friday's match will be treated to free Chick-fil-a sandwiches while supplies last and fans at the Georgia match on Sunday will have the opportunity to recieve free Kona Ice until 2:30 p.m. CT. Live video and live scoring of all three matches will be avaliable online at AuburnTigers.com.