COLUMBIA, S.C. — No. 8 South Carolina women’s tennis got a big performance from senior Ximena Siles Luna on senior day as the No.8-ranked Gamecocks held off No. 15 LSU for a 4-3 win on Saturday at the Carolina Tennis Center. The Gamecocks jumped out to an early 2-0 lead before the Tigers leveled the score, but sophomore Hadley Berg rallied for a win and Siles Luna came through late to seal the victory for the Garnet and Black.
The win was a big one for Carolina after dropping its first two SEC matches over the past week. The Gamecocks improve to 7-2 in SEC play and 15-4 overall, while remaining tied for third in the SEC standings. The Tigers fall to 5-5 in league play and 16-8 overall.
The Gamecocks scored first, taking a wild doubles point. The freshman tandem of Rachel Rohrabacher and Ingrid Gamarra Martins moved to 2-0 as a tandem after picking up a 6-4 win at No. 3. The action at No. 1 and 2 doubles was as tight as could be as both matches went into tiebreakers. No. 34 Berg and Paige Cline battled through two match points for LSU, eventually prevailing with a dramatic 10-8 tiebreak victory.
Martins extended the Gamecock lead to 2-0 with an impressive 6-1, 6-2 triumph of No. 48 Jessica Golovin at No. 2. The win is her fourth over a ranked opponent this spring and moves her to 5-3 in the SEC at the No. 2 position of the lineup.
The Tigers, however, refused to go away. Junior Caroline Dailey fell, 6-1 6-3, to No. 19 Joana Vale Costa at No. 1 singles, before Cline battled to a tough 6-1, 7-5 loss at No. 3.
Carolina held momentum on the final three courts as junior Brigit Folland and Siles Luna won their first sets, and Berg sent her match into a third set after winning 6-1 in the second. Berg powered to a 6-2 win in her third set to give the Gamecocks a 3-2 advantage with two matches still up for grabs.
In the final regular-season home match of her career, Siles Luna once again delivered a clutch performance when her team needed it most. In what can only be described as a storybook ending, Siles Luna took down senior Ella Taylor in straight sets to post her third match-clinching win of the season, 6-3, 6-1, and clinch the win for the Gamecocks. Folland would go on to fall in her third set, but the Gamecocks captured the 4-3 victory.
Quoting Head Coach Kevin Epley
On the win
“It’s good to bounce back because we really didn’t play very well the other night against Texas A&M. We felt like our attitudes were off and we were just not in the right place. Ever since then, we’ve been working hard on getting back to who we are, and we were able to get it back in a day-and-a-half and I’m proud of the girls. We have a ton of respect for LSU. We went in there last year and they beat us up pretty good. They have a great coaching staff. They’re a team that every year since the new coaching staff has come aboard, they get better and better as the season moves along. They have some sort of formula for that. We were expecting a really tough fight, and it was a tough fight.”
On Senior Ximena Siles Luna
“For Ximena, this is huge. This has been a storybook year. A year that every season hopes to have, and it’s not even over. To have her final home match, assuming we don’t host, come down to her match, it’s something she will remember forever. It’s super special for her in particular, because she has struggled at times over the past four years, and she really stepped up her maturity level this year to turn into the leader we needed her to be. Everybody loves her. She tells it like it is. She comes to practice every day and works hard. When she speaks, everyone listens. She’s really the heart and soul of our team in a lot of ways. She’s been a huge part of our team’s success so far.”
Match Changer
Sophomore Hadley Berg rebounded after a tough first set to post a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 win at No. 4 singles that gave the Gamecocks a 3-2 edge.
Notables
- The win gives the Gamecocks their best start through 19 matches since 2007.
- This marks the fastest the Gamecocks have reached seven SEC wins since 2010.
- The Gamecocks have now won four of their last five against the Tigers.
- South Carolina improves to 3-1 against top-15 teams on the season.
- The No. 34-ranked doubles duo of freshman Paige Cline and sophomore Hadley Berg moved to 10-2 this spring and 6-2 in the SEC at No. 1 doubles.
- Berg got back in the win column after a pair of losses, improving to 7-2 in the SEC, 15-2 this spring and 22-4 overall.
- Senior Ximena Siles Luna has clinched matches against No. 21 Clemson, No. 15 LSU and No. 56 Marshall
Up Next
Carolina closes its regular season with four road matches. The Gamecocks are at No. 14 Auburn and No. 51 Alabama the weekend of April 8-10, before going to No. 63 Tennessee and No. 4 Georgia April 15-17.
