LSU (9-2) had a busy weekend, first traveling to Nashville to begin SEC play with No. 20 Vanderbilt (5-3), then having Missouri (8-6) awaiting them when they returned home.
Behind ruthless doubles play and a large amount of confidence, the team took down the ranked Commodores 4-3, then proved to be the better Tigers team at home with a 4-0 sweep of Missouri.
Doubles play was one of the Tigers’ biggest struggles in their last loss versus ODU. They’ve made heavy improvements since then and that’s evident based on the results.
Going into Nashville, the duo facing the biggest challenge was Eden Richardson and Nina Geissler, as they faced the No. 18 duo in the country. They might’ve been underdogs going into the match, but that didn’t seem like the case at all once the duos squared off.
They dominated the best the Commodores had to offer with a 6-1 victory.
Richardson believes the duo’s building chemistry and states that the victory was a confidence booster.
“I feel like we’re understanding our games a bit more,” said Richardson. “We’re a lot more confident [now], especially after beating our first ranked team of the season.”
Geissler and she would continue to have success throughout the weekend, in both doubles and singles. They each took at least one singles point, with Geissler taking one versus Vanderbilt and Richardson having victories in both matches. They would also win their doubles match against Missouri 6-1.
Richardson feels like she’s been on a roll and credits her training for her recent success. But the Tigers couldn’t rely on her and Geissler alone to win.
Due to Vanderbilt only having five courts, freshman Maggie Cubitt was forced to wait until a court opened up. With her match starting as everyone else’s was ending and the score being 3-3, she knew her match would decide the outcome.
But she didn’t seem fazed. She dominated her match, clinching the ranked win for the Tigers with a 6-3 and 6-1 victory.
“Going out there I knew that it was up to me,” stated Cubitt. “I was just trying to take it point-by-point, take deep breaths, keep my cool, and just play tennis.”
Coach Julia Sell admired her composure during the match.
“When it came down to Maggie, she handled it with the composure of a refined senior there,” said Sell. “I think she’s gotten better with every match. She’s doing really, really well.”
She would also simultaneously clinch the match against Missouri with fellow teammate, Paris Corley, altering her singles record to 5-0 on the year and capping off a great weekend for the Tigers.
