The No. 2 ranked Georgia Bulldogs (8-3) shut out the No. 45 LSU Tigers (8-3) claiming a 4-0 victory at the SEC opener at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Georgia on Friday afternoon.
Down 2-4 in the first set, Mariana Gould fought back to claim a 6-4, 6-0 victory over Abby Owens and clinched the match for the Georgia Bulldogs. She had previously clinched the match for the Bulldogs in a match against the Clemson Tigers at the National Indoors earlier this February.
The Bulldogs have not lost to the Tigers since 1985.
Georgia junior Silvia Garcia, ranked No. 97 in the country, briskly captured the first singles point for the Bulldogs with a 6-3, 6-1 straight-set victory over Skylar Kuykendall (112). Garcia not only won the match but also broke Kuykendall’s serve to put the Bulldogs ahead 2-0. In tune with her court number, Ellen Perez (74) claimed the second singles point with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Noel Scott. Scott relinquished the match with a double fault. Gould (97), off to a rough start, made an abrupt comeback and secured the first set 6-4. She dominated Owens in the second set 6-0 and clinched the match for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs came out strong and took an early lead over the Tigers by securing wins on Courts 1 and 2 in just 48 minutes. Ellen Perez and Lauren Herring (25) beat Joana Vale Costa and Noel Scott 8-5. Perez sealed the match with an ace in the thirteenth game. 16th-ranked duo, Silvia Garcia and Kennedy Shaffer, clinched the doubles point for the Bulldogs with an 8-3 victory over Abby Owens and Skylar Kuykendall (60). The Bulldogs only dropped 10 games across all 3 doubles matches being played.
Herring (6) was leading 6-4, 3-1 against Vale Costa (38) while King was ahead 7-5, 2-1 in her match against Taylor when Gould clinched the match. Brinson (111), currently riding a 10-match singles win streak, had lost the first set 5-7, but was leading 4-3 in the second set.
After today’s 2-hour, 22 minute match, Georgia continues to lead 39-4 against LSU. This match served as a great opening for the Bulldogs into the SEC season. They will return to the courts at 1 p.m. on Sunday to take on No. 18 Texas A&M.
Comments