LSU Women’s Tennis Knocks Off Virginia, Earns Auburn Rematch In NCAA Quarterfinals

LSU women’s tennis is not finished making history.

The No. 10-seeded Tigers beat No. 7 Virginia, 4-1, Saturday in the NCAA Super Regional at the Virginia Tennis Facility in Charlottesville, Virginia, advancing to the NCAA quarterfinals and setting up another shot at an Auburn team that has already hurt LSU twice this season.

LSU will face No. 2 Auburn in the NCAA quarterfinals on Friday, May 15, at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Georgia.

That is the next story.

Saturday was the breakthrough.

LSU won the doubles point, then got straight-set singles victories from Ella McDonald, Addison Lanton and Cadence Brace to finish off Virginia on its home courts. The victory pushed LSU past the Super Regional round and into the final eight of the NCAA Tournament, giving the program one of its biggest postseason wins ever.

The Tigers did not back into it. They took it.

Virginia struck first in doubles when the Cavaliers’ No. 10-ranked team of Melodie Collard and Vivian Yang beat LSU’s No. 40 Cadence Brace and Kayla Cross, 6-3, on Court 1.

LSU answered on the next two courts.

Carolina Kuhl and Addison Lanton beat Katie Rolls and Isabelle Lacy, 7-5, on Court 3. Then LSU’s No. 17-ranked doubles team of Kenna Erickson and Ella McDonald beat No. 25 Annabelle Xu and Martina Genis Salas, 7-5, on Court 2 to give LSU the doubles point and a 1-0 lead.

From there, LSU turned the match into a statement.

McDonald pushed the Tigers ahead 2-0 with a 7-5, 6-1 victory over No. 84 Katie Rolls on Court 3. McDonald had to work through the first set, then controlled the second, giving LSU an early singles point and putting pressure on Virginia’s lineup.

Lanton followed with another important moment in her freshman season.

The No. 96-ranked Lanton beat No. 119 Isabelle Lacy, 6-4, 6-3, on Court 4, extending LSU’s lead to 3-0 and moving the Tigers within one point of the quarterfinals.

Virginia’s only point came on Court 2, where No. 28 Annabelle Xu beat No. 21 Kayla Cross, 6-3, 6-3.

Brace ended it before Virginia could make the match uncomfortable.

The No. 9-ranked LSU sophomore beat No. 65 Vivian Yang, 6-1, 6-4, on Court 1 to clinch the victory. Brace dominated the first set and held off Yang in the second, finishing the match and sending LSU into the NCAA quarterfinals.

Two matches were unfinished. On Court 5, Virginia’s Melodie Collard led Carolina Kuhl, 7-5, 4-5. On Court 6, LSU’s No. 125 Kenna Erickson led Martina Genis Salas, 6-4, 1-6, 1-0.

The unfinished courts did not matter.

LSU had already done enough.

Now comes Auburn.

And that is where this postseason gets even more interesting.

Auburn has beaten LSU twice this season. The first meeting came March 7 in Baton Rouge, when Auburn beat LSU, 4-2. The second came April 19 in Norman, Oklahoma, when Auburn beat LSU, 4-3, in the SEC Championship match. That SEC final came down to the last singles court, with Auburn’s Eva Ionescu winning a third-set tiebreaker at No. 6 singles to deliver the title.

That makes Friday’s quarterfinal more than the next round.

It is a third chance.

LSU has already proven it belongs on this stage. The Tigers went on the road and beat a No. 7 national seed to reach the final eight. They did it with doubles toughness, top-line strength from Brace, and middle-lineup production from McDonald and Lanton.

Now LSU gets the opponent that has already stood in its way twice.

The Tigers do not have to wonder how close they are to Auburn. They already know. The SEC Championship loss was 4-3. It was decided by the final match. That does not guarantee anything in Athens, but it gives LSU a clear truth heading into the quarterfinals.

The gap is not theoretical.

It is one point.

And now LSU gets one more chance to close it.

Match Results

No. 10 LSU 4, No. 7 Virginia 1
Charlottesville, Virginia
Virginia Tennis Facility

Singles

1. No. 9 Cadence Brace, LSU, def. No. 65 Vivian Yang, Virginia, 6-1, 6-4
2. No. 28 Annabelle Xu, Virginia, def. No. 21 Kayla Cross, LSU, 6-3, 6-3
3. No. 77 Ella McDonald, LSU, def. No. 84 Katie Rolls, Virginia, 7-5, 6-1
4. No. 96 Addison Lanton, LSU, def. No. 119 Isabelle Lacy, Virginia, 6-4, 6-3
5. Melodie Collard, Virginia, vs. Carolina Kuhl, LSU, 7-5, 4-5, unfinished
6. Martina Genis Salas, Virginia, vs. No. 125 Kenna Erickson, LSU, 4-6, 6-1, 0-1, unfinished

Doubles

1. No. 10 Melodie Collard/Vivian Yang, Virginia, def. No. 40 Cadence Brace/Kayla Cross, LSU, 6-3
2. No. 17 Kenna Erickson/Ella McDonald, LSU, def. No. 25 Annabelle Xu/Martina Genis Salas, Virginia, 7-5
3. Carolina Kuhl/Addison Lanton, LSU, def. Katie Rolls/Isabelle Lacy, Virginia, 7-5