After losing its third match of Southeastern Conference play by a 4-0 score against No. 4 Alabama on Friday, No. 47 LSU was eager to notch its first conference win of the 2014 season against No. 20 Auburn on Sunday.
The Lady Tigers put themselves in prime position to pull the upset against Auburn before ultimately falling 4-3 at W.T. “Dub” Robinson Stadium.
The clash between LSU (7-6, 0-4 SEC) and Auburn (14-2, 4-0 SEC) extended to four of the six singles matches being decided in three sets, including four tiebreakers. Auburn’s No. 114 singles player Emily Flickinger clinched the close contest by beating LSU’s No. 87 Noel Scott 6-7 (7-9), 7-6 (7-3), 6-4.
LSU coach Julia Sell said Sunday’s match produced the most positives of LSU’s two-loss weekend.
“It was an incredible college tennis match,” Sell said. “It was a four-and-a-half hour battle. I thought we finally put ourselves in a position to beat a really good, quality team. It’s nice to see our freshmen starting to relax and being confident out there.”
Two LSU freshman, Abigail Owens and Joana Vale Costa, proved Sell’s point and helped keep the Lady Tigers alive in a match with several lead changes.
Owens followed up Wednesday’s SEC Freshman of the Week honor by defeating Auburn’s Michala Kucharova 1-6, 7-6, 6-2. Costa won LSU’s first singles point with her biggest victory of the season, defeating Auburn’s No. 29 Pleun Burgmans 6-3, 6-0.
The win was Costa’s first win against a ranked opponent in her LSU career. The Lisbon, Portugal, native has spent the first half of the season adjusting to life in the U.S. and college competition, Sell said.
“Joana, we haven’t seen the best of her yet,” Sell said. “Today was the first day where she relaxed and I thought she looked more comfortable. She played very well but still not even the best of her ability.”
Despite encouraging performances, Sunday’s loss means LSU remains winless in conference play. LSU has lost four matches in a row and will continue its SEC slate at Missouri next weekend.