NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Four wins in singles highlighted the opening day of fall competition for Auburn women's tennis Friday at the Music City Scramble, hosted by Vanderbilt.
In the morning's action against Vanderbilt, Auburn picked up singles wins on four of six courts. Selin Ovunc fought back to earn a three-set win over Emma Kurtz, 0-6, 7-6, 6-2, and Georgie Axon also overcame an early deficit for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over Amanda Meyer. Yu Chen won in straight sets over Anessa Lee, 6-3, 6-3, and Carolyn Ansari picked up a win, leading 6-4, 4-5 in the second set when Vandy's Anna Ross retired. Taylor Russo fought to the finish against Holly Staff, but came up short in a 7-5, 4-6, 7-5 setback, and Shir Azran dropped her first match as a Tiger to Marcella Cruz, 6-3, 6-2.
"We are grateful to the SEC and to our administration for making fall competition possible for us," Auburn head coach Caroline Lilley said. "Today our opponents exposed some things we will make a concerted effort to improve. Aggressive tennis requires a commitment to doing the right things over and over, for the duration of a match and an entire season, in order to grow our arsenal of skills. We can and will be better, one day at a time."
Doubles in the afternoon got off to a slow start as the Tigers dropped three matches to opponents from Ole Miss. Azran and Ovunc fell 7-5 in a tight match with Mize and Fiquet, while the teams of Ansari/Russo and Axon/Chen both fell by 6-3 scores.
Tennessee also swept three doubles matches as Auburn mixed up its pairings for the second wave of matches. Azran/Chen fell 6-3, Axon/Russo fell 6-4, and Ansari/Ovunc dropped a 6-2 decision.
Day two of competition in Nashville will feature all singles play. The Tigers will face student-athletes from Tennessee beginning at approximately 4 p.m. CT. Live scoring will be available at VandyStats.com.
For the latest on Auburn women's tennis, follow @AuburnWTennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Auburn Results – Friday, Oct. 9
Singles
Carolyn Ansari (AU) def. Anna Ross (VU), 6-4, 4-5 ret.
Marcella Cruz (VU) def. Shir Azran (AU), 6-3, 6-2
Holly Staff (VU) def. Taylor Russo (AU), 7-5, 4-6, 7-5
Georgie Axon (AU) def. Amanda Meyer (VU), 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
Yu Chen (AU) def. Anessa Lee (VU), 6-3, 6-3
Selin Ovunc (AU) def. Emma Kurtz (VU), 0-6, 7-6, 6-2
Doubles
Bortles/Machalova (OM) def. Ansari/Russo (AU), 6-3
Mize/Fiquet (OM) def. Azran/Ovunc (AU), 7-5
Gabrielsen/Pool (OM) def. Axon/Chen (AU), 6-3
Silva/Creath (UT) def. Azran/Chen (AU), 6-3
Briggs/Kuczer (UT) def. Axon/Russo (AU), 6-4
Adeshina/McGiffin (UT) def. Ansari/Ovunc (AU), 6-2