April 9, 2009
Auburn Live Scoring | Alabama Live Scoring
Up Next
The 24th-ranked South Carolina women’s tennis team (11-8, 4-4 SEC) faces another critical weekend of SEC play when it hosts No. 30 Auburn (11-8, 3-4 SEC) on Friday at 2 p.m. followed by No. 26 Alabama (13-5, 3-5 SEC) on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Senior Day
Sunday’s match against Alabama marks the last home match of 2009 for the Gamecocks and the last chance to see seniors Gira Schofield, Natasa Vuckovic and Suzanna Mansour in action in Columbia.
Last Time Out
After winning its fourth match in a row by dispatching Arkansas 5-2 in Fayetteville, Ark., South Carolina dropped a 5-2 decision at LSU. The Gamecocks lost the doubles points but did snag an impressive victory at No. 1 doubles over the nation’s 17th-ranked tandem thanks to Natasa Vuckovic and Ana Marija Zubori. Three of six singles matches went three sets and South Carolina only managed a victory in one of them. Dijana Stojic scored a three-set victory at the third singles position after fighting off match points when she trailed 5-2 in the third set. Prior to Stojic, Miljana Jocic grabbed a win in straight sets on court five. The final two matches on courts two and four saw Zubori and Vuckovic lose in three sets to give the Tigers just their second win over the Gamecocks since the league expanded to 12 teams in 1992.
Auburn Series History
History favors the Gamecocks in their history with the Auburn Tigers, as they lead the all-time series 22-4. Last season, however, Auburn beat South Carolina twice, first in the regular season and then in the first round of the SEC Tournament. Prior to losing to the Tigers in the regular season, the Gamecocks had posted 17 straight victories over Auburn. South Carolina defeated Auburn 4-3 the last time it visited Columbia in 2007. The Gamecocks won the doubles point over the Tigers and then cruised on courts one, three and six to pick up the victory.
Alabama Series History
South Carolina also holds the upper hand with the Alabama Crimson Tide with an 11-7 edge in the series history. Eight of the last 11 meetings have belonged to the Gamecocks. Last season, South Carolina earned a 4-2 triumph in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide’s last visit to Columbia was rather unpleasant, as the Gamecocks look advantage of an Alabama team going through a dramatic rebuilding season by beating the Tide 7-0. The only match South Carolina dropped that day came at No. 1 doubles.
