NASHVILLE - No. 11 Vanderbilt's upset bid of the fourth-ranked Texas A&M Aggies came up just short Friday night at the Currey Tennis Center, as the Commodores fell, 4-3.
Vanderbilt (9-5, 2-1) saw its four-match win streak come to an end on a brisk, chilly evening in the first home outdoor match of the season, while Texas A&M (9-1, 3-0) won its seventh-straight match overall.
Texas A&M was able to get out to an early advantage by winning the doubles point, as the Aggies took matches at the Nos. 1 and 2 positions. At No. 1, No. 11 Cristina Stancu and Stefania Hristov defeated Ashleigh Antal and Marie Casares, 8-4. Wen Sun and Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar then won in the No. 2 spot over Courtney Colton and Lauren Mira, 8-5.
(Cristina) Sanchez-Quintanar continued her stellar play in singles, as she defeated Mira in straight sets, 6-0, 6-2. With her win in the No. 1 spot, the Aggies quickly led 2-0 in the match.
However, the Commodores would not go down without a fight. Antal took care of business at the No. 5 position by defeating (Stefania) Hristov, 6-4, 6-3. Antal is an impressive 10-1 in dual play and now 3-0 to begin SEC action.
With Antal's win, Vanderbilt closed the gap, 2-1, but Texas A&M applied the pressure with a win at the No. 2 position. (Cristina) Stancu was able to defeat Casares, 6-3, 6-4, to give the Aggies a 3-1 lead.
Knowing that Texas A&M needed just one more point to clinch the match, Vanderbilt received two great performances from Georgina Sellyn and Frances Altick.
Sellyn defeated (Wen) Sun in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3, while Altick came back to win a tough three-set match versus Anna Mamalat, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4. Sellyn's win improved her record to 7-0 in the No. 4 position and Altick ran her record to 5-0 in the No. 6 spot.
With one more match in play and the score tied, 3-3, it came down to a battle on court No. 3. Texas A&M's Nazari Urbina and Vanderbilt's Colton delivered a great match to end the night. Colton took the first set 6-4, before Urbina regrouped to win the second set, 6-3. In the third and final set, Urbina held a 5-2 lead before Colton closed the gap, 5-4, only to see Urbina shut the door and clinch the match, 6-4.
Vanderbilt hosts Missouri Sunday at 1 p.m. before wraping up its four-match homestand next weekend with visits from Mississippi State on Friday, March 15 (4 p.m. CT) and Ole Miss on Sunday, March 17 (1 p.m. CT).
Singles Results
1. No. 6 Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar (A&M) def. No. 60 Lauren Mira (Vandy) 6-0, 6-2
2. No. 83 Cristina Stancu (A&M) def. Marie Casares (Vanderbilt) 6-3, 6-4
3. No. 67 Nazari Urbina (A&M) def. Courtney Colton (Vanderbilt) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
4. No. 64 Georgina Sellyn (Vanderbilt) def. Wen Sun (A&M) 6-4, 6-3
5. Ashleigh Antal (Vanderbilt) def. Stefania Hristov (A&M) 6-4, 6-3
6. Frances Altick (Vanderbilt) def. Anna Mamalat (A&M) 6-3, 4-6, 6-4
Doubles Results
1. No. 11 Stancu/Hristov (A&M) def. Antal/Casares (Vanderbilt) 8-4
2. Sun/Sanchez-Quintanar (A&M) def. No. 29 Colton/Mira (Vandy) 8-5
3. Altick/Sellyn (Vanderbilt) vs. I. Deheza/P. Deheza (A&M) 5-5, unfinished
Order of Finish
Singles: 1,5,2,4,6,3
Doubles: 1,2
