The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Alabama
Rebels Push Back the Tide
3/24/2016 | Women's Tennis
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - In just her second dual match in singles, freshman Allie Sanford delivered the Ole Miss women's tennis team a much-needed 5-2 win at Alabama Thursday night.
They tried to play the match outdoors, but that didn't last long as rain came again, forcing the conclusion of doubles and all of singles indoors.
With the Rebels leading 3-2 and senior Mai El Kamash trying to get to a third set at No. 3 singles, Sanford closed out Bama's Bennett Dunn 6-3, 6-3 at No. 6 singles. Sanford led 6-3, 5-3 and avoided having to serve it out by breaking Dunn's serve to end the Rebels four-match losing streak in SEC play.
The Rebels earned wins on courts one and two in doubles to claim the early 1-0 lead. Freshman Tea Jandric made quick work of the Crimson Tide's Joanna Nena Savva 6-1, 6-0 on court four to give the Rebels a 2-0 lead.
After Alabama tied it up with wins on courts two and five, 37th-ranked Arianne Hartono finished off a straight set win (6-3, 6-4) against 44th-ranked Erin Routliffe at No. 1 singles to put Ole Miss up 3-2.
Notables…
• The Rebels are now 9-5 overall and 2-5 in the SEC. They travel to face No. 15 Auburn Sunday at 1 p.m.
• The Rebels snapped a five-match losing streak to Alabama and picked up their first win in Tuscaloosa since 2010.
• The Rebels are a combined 22-11 at the top of the lineup.
• Arianne Hartono improved to 16-8 overall and 9-2 at No. 1 singles. She is now 3-2 in the SEC.
• Freshman Allie Sanford clinched her first career win in only her second dual match in singles.
• Tea Jandric snapped a three-match losing streak and improved to 7-3 at No. 4 singles.
Quoting Head Coach Mark Beyers...
"It's always good to get a road win in the SEC. This was a hard-fought battle against a solid Alabama team. We were able to capture the doubles point and then take three first sets in singles. It was nice to get a quick point on the board from Tea, and then a great job of closing out matches by Ari and Allie Sanford. Mai did an excellent job of extending her match and eventually turning the momentum and getting the W in a super breaker."
Players Mentioned
