History was already made when LSU’s women’s tennis team stunned the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs to reach the program’s first-ever SEC Women’s Tennis Tournament final.
But while the postseason run for LSU was historic, it ended in a tightly contested championship matchup against a tradition-rich Auburn Tigers women’s tennis team.
The program’s first conference championship ended a nearly five-year streak of dominance by Georgia and Texas A&M, with neither team lifting the trophy.
The semifinal against Georgia set the stage for LSU’s momentum. Entering as the No. 9 seed, LSU earned its first victory over the Bulldogs since 1985 and the highest-ranked win in program history.
LSU took control early by claiming the doubles point behind wins from Addison Lanton and Carolina Kuhl, along with the pairing of Cadence Brace and Kayla Cross.
In singles play, Ella McDonald extended LSU’s lead before Georgia responded. Lanton then delivered a crucial three-set comeback victory to put LSU within striking distance. Brace sealed the moment, rallying from a first-set deficit to defeat Georgia’s Anatasiia Lopata 7-5, 6-1, and clinched the 4-1 win that sent LSU to its first SEC final.
That confidence carried into the championship match against Auburn, who were fresh off of winning the regular-season title. LSU once again had to battle back from a dropped doubles point.
However, the final quickly turned into a battle. The Tigers found themselves behind on almost every court, and struggled to maintain momentum as Auburn surged.
Despite playing from behind, LSU pieced together key wins to move ahead 3-2, placing the championship within reach. Auburn answered again, tying the match at 3-3 and forcing the SEC title to come down to one final court with LSU’s Kinaa Graham and Auburn’s Eva Ionescu.
As the third set rolled around, the energy on the court surged through the team and onto the players. LSU began relying on the resilience shown against Georgia, battling through the deciding match to earn the clinching point and secure the championship.
Just when Graham seemingly pulled away, Ionescu answered and put the brakes on a game that became a lot harder than LSU thought it would be. Tied at 3-3, the confidence that LSU once exuded began slipping away, and Auburn grabbed the lead for the first time in that set.
And just as the matches for LSU have gone, a dramatic comeback was on the rise. After grabbing the lead for only a short time, Graham bounced right back, tying the match up 6-6, and now the real show began.
After nearly an hour, the fight just wasn’t enough to pull through for Graham. Even in defeat, LSU’s run remains one for the history books, reaching the finals for the first time in program history.
While the title slipped away, LSU’s postseason breakthrough, highlighted by its historic semifinal win, signals a program on the rise and capable of competing with the nation’s most established powers.
