NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The fourth-ranked Vanderbilt women’s tennis team opened Southeastern Conference play Friday afternoon, taking a 4-1 victory over the No. 16 Auburn Tigers.
Friday’s win was the Dores’ eighth-straight win in SEC openers, a streak that dates back to 2010. With the win, the Commodores improve to 8-2 on the season.
“Auburn is a very good team,” stated head coach Geoff Macdonald. “Considering it was really only our second or third day outside, I thought we did a really good job. That’s a tough match… that first match outside you’re going to miss some stuff that you wouldn’t later in the year. Any win in the conference is huge, and we have tons of respect for Auburn.”
The Commodores opened the match by clinching the doubles point on courts three then two, respectively. Amanda Meyer and Christina Rosca were first off the court for the black and gold, picking up a 6-2 victory over the Tigers’ Madeline Meredith and Jaeda Daniel. Meyer and Rosca remain undefeated in tandems this dual match season.
6-2 victory on court three for Rosca/Meyer! #FightDores pic.twitter.com/biJXv6mvyP
 Vandy Women’s Tennis (@Vandywtennis) March 2, 2018
Emma Kurtz and Emily Smith clinched the doubles point on court two against Georgie Axon and Caroline Turner, 6-3. On court one, No. 23 Astra Sharma and Fernanda Contreras led No. 60 Alizee Michaud and Taylor Russo 5-3 at the conclusion of doubles.
Rolling off their improved doubles play, the Commodores took four first set victories, including two first set advantages against ranked opponents on courts one and three.
No. 120 Kurtz was VU’s first singles victory, as the sophomore downed Andie Dikosavljevic in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2. The victory on court five ended a three-match skid for the Atlanta native.
No. 56 Sharma pulled herself out of a 2-5 hole to take five games in a row and complete a first set comeback over No. 60 Daniel, 7-5. The Aussie continued consistent tennis in the second set, giving VU the 3-1 advantage over Auburn with a 7-5, 6-2 win. The victory was Sharma’s 101st singles win (101-30) at Vanderbilt, after earning her 100th victory against UNC’s No. 8 Alle Sanford last Sunday.
Auburn earned one victory on court four, a close 7-6(3), 6-4 win over then-undefeated Amanda Meyer, before the Dores closed out Friday’s league opener on court six.
In her SEC debut, Summer Dvorak handed Axon a straight-set 6-4, 6-3 loss to seal the 4-1 Vanderbilt victory. The clinch was timely, as the Tiger’s neared a potential victory on court two.
“I give Emma Kurtz a lot of credit,” continued Macdonald. “Emma has been struggling, and she worked very hard this week to get her game back. She’s very valuable to us. I also give Summer Dvorak credit for clinching the match. She had a lot of pressure on, and she handled it nicely.”
Vandy hosts No. 37 Alabama at 1 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. All regular season tennis matches are free to the public. VU will host “Sundae Sundays” for fans, as well as an autograph signing opportunity following the match against Alabama.
Summer clinches the Commodore victory, 6-4, 6-3 on court six!
Final: 4-1, Vanderbilt #FightDores pic.twitter.com/pgAdSeGgzr
 Vandy Women’s Tennis (@Vandywtennis) March 2, 2018
