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Gamecocks Upset No. 6 Auburn at Home
Women's Tennis  . 

Gamecocks Upset No. 6 Auburn at Home

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The South Carolina women’s tennis team took down its first top 10 ranked team since 2019 to move to a perfect 2-0 record in the SEC home opener weekend after upsetting No. 6 Auburn 4-2 in a comeback thriller.

Additionally, this victory marked head coach Kevin Epley’s 200th win with the Gamecocks.

Auburn opened the match by jumping to a quick lead, clinching the doubles point after picking up wins from the No. 1 and 3 positions. Maria Garcia and Ava Esposito cruised to a 6-0 win over Helena Buchwald and Jana Stojanova despite the Gamecocks battling to a deuce during three of the games. No. 20 DJ Bennett and Ava Hrastar secured the first point of the match with a 6-2 win over No. 57 Sarah Hamner and Kaitlyn Carnicella.

Things started off even at the beginning of singles action as the Gamecocks claimed first set wins on three courts while the Tigers took initial victories on the remaining three. Bella Bergkvist Larsson evened out the score to 1-1 for South Carolina, winning in straight sets of 6-3 and 6-2. Misa Malkin secured the Gamecocks first lead of the day after earning her first ranked win of the season, topping No. 17 Merna Refaat in a dominant 6-4, 6-0 showing. Carnicella (6-3) and Olympe Lancelot (6-2) bounced back for their second sets to even their matches out.

The Tigers tied it all up to 2-2 from court 1 as No. 2 DJ Bennett topped Hamner in a tightly contested tiebreaker for the second set. After dropping the first set 1-6 Hamner put up a strong effort in the second, narrowing a 1-3 deficit to 3-all. The senior took the lead a couple times throughout the set before Bennett ultimately claimed the match win with a 7-3 victory in the tiebreak. Buchwald took the lead back for the Gamecocks with a win from court 6 in straight sets, 6-3, 7-5.

With South Carolina leading 3-2, the match came down to Carnicella and Lacelot on courts 2 and 3, both locked in tight third sets. Carnicella took control early in the decider, breaking Hrastar to go up 3-1 and never looking back. She remained dominant on serve, dictating points and keeping Hrastar from earning a single game point the rest of the way. With her victory, Carnicella sealed the 4-2 win for the Gamecocks with a 6-2 final set score.

The Gamecocks head back on the road to take on Tennessee on Fri., March 7 at 12:00 p.m.

For the latest South Carolina women’s tennis information, continue to follow GamecocksOnline.com or the team on social media (@GamecockWTennis).

(53) South Carolina 4, (6) Auburn 2

Doubles (order of finish:3,1)

  1. #20 DJ Bennett/Ava Hrastar (AUB) def. #57 Sarah Hamner/Kaitlyn Carnicella (SC) 6-2
  2. #69 Angella Okutoyi/Merna Refaat (AUB) led Olympe Lancelot/Bella Larsson (SC) 5-3, unfinished
  3. Maria Garcia/Ava Esposito (AUB) def. Helena Buchwald/Jana Stojanova (SC) 6-0

Singles (order of finish: 5,4,1,6,2)

  1. #2 DJ Bennett (AUB) def. #29 Sarah Hamner (SC) 6-1, 7-6(2)
  2. #68 Kaitlyn Carnicella def. Ava Hrastar (AUB) 4-6, 6-3, 6-1
  3. #57 Angella Okutoyi (AUB) led Olympe Lancelot (SC) 6-4, 2-6, 5-4, unfinished
  4. Misa Malkin (SC) def. #17 Merna Refaat (AUB) 6-4, 6-0
  5. Bella Bergkvist Larsson (SC) def. Ava Esposito (AUB) 6-3, 6-2
  6. Helena Buchwald (SC) def. Alice Battesti (AUB) 6-3, 7-5

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