MOBILE, Ala. | South Alabama battled back after dropping the doubles point, recording four straight points to beat Georgia Southern 4-1 Sunday at the Bruce David Lubel Memorial Tennis Courts.
The Jags struck first in doubles with a win from
Otoha Aoki and
Chems Doha Zeghlouli at number three, beating Lindsay Tulenko and Ninon Martinache 6-2.
Georgia Southern evened the score with a 6-2 win at number two, where Sonja Keranen and Ana Tsitavets beat
Elysia Pool and
Nikola Novotna 6-2.
The Eagles clinched the doubles point after a back-and-forth match at number one, where Liv Ryan and Silvia Martinez won 7-5 over
Luminita Tutunaru and
Tereza Dejnozkova.
Down 0-1, South focused their attention on singles, where they won first sets on five of six courts.
Luminita Tutunaru evened the score at 1-1 with a win in straight sets at number one, beating Silvia Martinez 6-0, 6-1.
South took a 2-1 lead with a win from
Elysia Pool at number three, beating Nanaka Kijima 6-0, 6-2.
Freshman
Chems Doha Zeghlouli gave South Alabama a 3-1 advantage with a 6-4, 7-5 win at number six over Paula Hijos.
South clinched the 4-1 win with a 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 win from
Delien Kleinhans at number five, beating Georgia Southern's Lindsay Tulenko.
The remaining matches on courts two and four went unfinished, both in the third set.
The Jags (14-3, 4-2) hit the road next weekend, traveling to App State on Sunday and Marshall Sunday.
Match Results
April 2, 2023
10 am – Mobile, Ala.
Singles
1.
Luminita Tutunaru (USA) def. Silvia Martinez (GS) 6-0, 6-1
2.
Nikola Novotna (USA) vs. Ana Tsitavets (GS) 5-7, 7-5, 1-3, unfinished
3.
Elysia Pool (USA) def. Nanaka Kijima (GS) 6-0, 6-2
4.
Tereza Dejnozkova (USA) vs. Lindsay Tulenko (GS) 7-6 (7-5), 1-6, 4-5, unfinished
5.
Delien Kleinhans (USA) def. Ninon Martinache (GS) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
6.
Chems Doha Zeghlouli (USA) def. Paula Hijos (GS) 6-4, 7-5
Doubles
1. Liv Ryan/Silvia Martinez (GS) def.
Tereza Dejnozkova/
Luminita Tutunaru (USA) 7-5
2. Sonja Keranen/Ana Tsitavets (GS) def.
Elysia Pool/
Nikola Novotna (USA) 6-2
3.
Otoha Aoki/
Chems Doha Zeghlouli (USA) def. Lindsay Tulenko/Ninon Martinache (GS) 6-2
Quotable from coach Dr. Jaco Keyser
"I thought that was a great match between potentially two very good teams. One of the better college matches I've seen in a while, not just because we won but that was very important for our team from a psychological standpoint after dumping that doubles point. We just battled. I think, not just for this season, but for the future, this might be a tipping point of what our standard is from a competitive standpoint. Super excited about today."
Up Next
South Alabama travels to App State Saturday at 9 a.m.
Follow the Jags
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—USA—
