Alabama Suffers Tough Loss at South Carolina
3/25/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
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Twenty-third ranked Alabama lost a heart-breaker Friday night in Columbia, S.C. to the South Carolina Gamecocks, 4-3.
After darkness moved the match indoors to finish, Ashley Bentley wasn’t able to complete her comeback on Christyn Lucas and fell 6-7(5), 7-6(4), 7-6(4). Lucas’s win sealed the victory for USC.
Bentley and Lucas played one of the truly great matches of the season. All three sets were decided in a tiebreaker.
Alabama’s (6-8, 1-4) start Friday was as good a start as the Crimson Tide has had all year. The Tide won all three doubles matches and looked to be in command of the match. However, Alabama struggled to put the Gamecocks away in singles.
It was a big night for the Tide’s Robin Stephenson. The nation’s seventh ranked singles player clinched her second straight 20-win season with a victory at No. 1 singles. She’s 20-10 on the year and became the second Alabama player this year to reach 20 wins. In doubles, Stephenson and partner Ashley Bentley earned career win No. 32 together to move to within one win of tying the school’s all-time wins record. They’ll go for it Sunday at Florida.
Natalie McElveen also won Friday. McElveen has proved to be a pleasant surprise this season for Alabama and is now 11-8 this season.
The Crimson Tide will play its final SEC road match of the season Sunday at Florida before returning home to play its final six matches of the season at the UA Tennis Complex.
No. 27 South Carolina (8-4 OA, 2-2 SEC) 4
No. 23 Alabama (6-8 OA, 1-4 SEC) 3
Doubles:
1. #28 Robin Stephenson/Ashley Bentley (A) d. Danielle Wiggins/Magda Wojdylo (SC) 9-7
2. Melissa Minor/Natalie McElveen (A) d. Christyn Lucas/Miranda Gutierrez (SC) 8-4
3. Maria Muller/Andrea Brenes (A) d. Fallon Koon/Megan McGavock(SC) 8-5
Order of Finish: 2,3,1
Singles:
1. #7 Robin Stephenson (A) d. Danielle Wiggins (SC) 6-4,6-2
2. Christyn Lucas (SC) d. #58 Ashley Bentley (A) 6-7(5), 7-6(4),7-6(4)
3. Miranda Gutierrez (SC) d. Melissa Minor (A) 6-4,6-2
4. Magda Wojdylo (SC) d. Maria Muller (A) 6-3,6-2
5. Natalie McElveen (A) d. Fallon Koon (SC) 6-3,3-6,7-6(3)
6. Megan McGavock(SC) d. Andrea Brenes (A) 6-2,5-7,7-5
Order of Finish: 4,1,3,5,6,2
