Alabama
Georgia
Women's Tennis Edged, 4-3, by Georgia
3/6/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
March 6, 2011
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The 34th ranked women's tennis team dropped a 4-3 heartbreaker on Sunday to No. 13 Georgia in a match that lasted nearly three and a half hours at the Alabama Tennis Stadium. The loss puts the Crimson Tide at 7-3 on the season and 0-1 against Southeastern Conference opponents, while the Bulldogs improve to 6-1 overall and 2-0 versus league foes.
"We were in the match from the beginning and played well enough to win," Alabama head coach Jenny Mainz said. "There are so many positives for us to take out of this match. When it came time to make something happen though, Georgia stepped up and played the big points."
Alabama started off the match by taking the doubles point with wins on courts two and three. The Tide has not lost a doubles point all season. On court three, Alabama sophomore Antonia Foehse and freshman Mary Anne Macfarlane beat Georgia freshman Alexandra Anghelescu and senior Cameron Ellis 8-2. Court one featured a match between a pair of ranked opponents with the Tide team of junior Courtney McLane and sophomore Alexa Guarachi coming in at No. 7 and Georgia junior Chelsey Gullickson and freshman Kate Fuller at No. 25. The Bulldogs would even the count despite a late rally from the Tide as Gullickson and Fuller won 8-4. The deciding match was on court two, where Alabama freshman Alex Clay and junior Taylor Lindsey came back from a 4-7 deficit to pull the upset over Georgia freshmen Maho Kowase and Lilly Kimbell, ranked 37th in the nation, 9-7.
The Tide continued its strong play to start singles action. Clay handled Anghelescu on court four in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. No. 116 McLane ran Alabama's lead to 3-0 defeating 59th-ranked Nadja Gilchrist on court three, also in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1. From there, the Bulldogs took control, winning the final four decisions and the match. On court one, Gullickson topped Macfarlane 7-5, 6-2, while Kimbell took a hard-fought match from Foeshe, 6-4, 6-3, on court five. Kowase, ranked No. 78 in singles, held off a comeback bid from 69th-ranked Guarachi, 6-4, 7-5, on court two before Georgia clinched the win with a 6-3, 6-3 win by No. 90 Ellis over Lindsey on court six.
"We fought and worked really hard for the doubles point," Mainz said. "We had the momentum heading into singles. In any situation where the match is as close as this one was, it is going to come down to a handful of points. We can play with anyone in the country. Today was certainly a testament to that. There is nothing for us to hang our heads about."
The Tide continues conference play on Friday, March 11, travelling to Gainesville to take on No. 1 Florida at 5 p.m. CT.
RESULTS
Doubles
1. No. 25 Gullickson/Fuller (UGA) def. No. 7 Guarachi/McLane (UA) 8-4
2. Clay/Lindsey (UA) def. No. 37 Kowase/Kimbell (UGA) 9-7
3. No. 31 Foehse/Macfarlane (UA) def. Anghelescu/Ellis (UGA) 8-2
Order of finish: 3,1,2*
Singles
1. No. 48 Chelsey Gullickson (UGA) def. No. 29 Mary Anne Macfarlane (UA) 7-5, 6-2
2. No. 78 Maho Kowase (UGA) def. No. 69 Alexa Guarachi (UA) 6-4, 7-5
3. No. 116 Courtney McLane (UA) def. No. 59 Nadja Gilchrist (UGA) 6-4, 6-1
4. Alex Clay (UA) def. Alexandra Anghelescu (UGA) 6-1, 6-2
5. Lilly Kimbell (UGA) def. Antonia Foehse (UA) 6-4, 6-3
6. No. 90 Cameron Ellis (UGA) def. Taylor Lindsey (UA) 6-3, 6-3
Order of finish: 4,3,1,5,2,6*
Players Mentioned
