Michigan
LSU
Seniors Shine in Michigan's NCAA Second-Round Win at LSU
5/8/2021 7:02:00 PM | Women's Tennis
» U-M fought back from a 3-1 deficit in the team match, winning the final three matches on court in three sets for the 4-3 win over LSU.
» Michigan got singles wins from Chiara Lommer, Kari Miller, Alyvia Jones and Bella Lorenzini in the win. Lorenzini provided the clinching match, coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the third set and winning the final four games for the victory.
» With the win, Michigan advanced to its ninth Sweet 16 appearance since 2010. This is the first time during that run that U-M won a pair of matches on the road to advance.
Site: Baton Rouge, La. (LSU Tennis Complex)
Event: NCAA Tournament (Second Round)
Result: #20 Michigan 4, #15 LSU 3
Records: U-M (19-3), LSU (15-6)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, May 16 -- vs. Stanford/Pepperdine - NCAA Round of 16 (Orlando, Fla.), 4 p.m.
BATON ROUGE, La. -- Down 3-1 in the team match, the University of Michigan women's tennis team won the final three matches on court in three sets to punch its ticket to the NCAA Sweet1 16 with a 4-3 win over No. 12 seed and host LSU Saturday afternoon (May 8) at the LSU Tennis Complex.
After winning the doubles point, LSU won two of the first three singles matches off court to take a 3-1 lead. The remaining three matches on court, which Michigan needed to win all of, were each entering third sets.
Senior Bella Lorenzini put the fourth point on the board with a roller-coaster match at No. 6. In the third and final set, Lorenzini fell behind 3-0 before slowly starting a comeback. She won two straight games, taking advantage of a double-fault from Nina Geissler and then holding serve in the next game. Geissler answered back with a hold of her own as all attention shifted to the court when U-M tied up the team match at 3-3.
Lorenzini fought back from a 15-40 deficit in the next game to hold, but once again, Geissler answered to maintain the lead at 5-3. Lorenzini held at love, giving Geissler an opportunity to serve for the match. After falling behind 30-0, the Wolverine won the final four points to tie the set at 5-5.
Lorenzini did her part in the next game, cashing in on the deuce point when she came to the net for the serve-and-volley. Geissler headed back to the line to serve to stay in the match but after winning the first point, Lorenzini won the next four to seal the match for the Wolverines.
Freshman Kari Miller ignited the comeback behind a 3-6, 6-3, 6-0 win at the top spot to account for U-M's second point of the day. Miller went up a break at 3-2 in the first but could not hold it as LSU reeled off four straight games for the win. In the second set, Miller got the space she needed early with a break of serve at 2-1 en route to the 6-3 win. The freshman cruised to the third-set win, keeping Michigan's hopes alive in the team match.
Senior Alyvia Jones scored Michigan's third point with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 win at No. 5, setting up Lorenzini for the win. Jones won the first two games of the first set and never gave it back in the 6-4 win. She fell behind early in the second but came back for a 3-3 tie. LSU won the final three games, sending the match to a third. Much like Miller, it was all Jones in the third set as she won the first five games to tie the team match at 3-3.
LSU got the early lead with the doubles point by getting wins at No. 3 and No. 2. Michigan's top duo of Jones and freshman Jaedan Brown grabbed a 6-3 win at No. 1 sandwiched between LSU's wins, but Michigan's comeback at No. 2 came up short as the Tigers took the point.
The teams split their first sets, with Michigan taking wins at No. 2, No. 5 and No. 6.
The Tigers got off court first, winning in straight sets at No. 3 for a 2-0 lead.
Graduate student Chiara Lommer halved the Tiger lead with a 7-6 (1), 6-4 win at the No. 2 spot. She was down 3-0 in the first set but followed that with five straight games for a 5-3 lead. She was unable to serve out the set, which went to a tiebreaker. Lommer won the breaker going away at 7-1 for the early control.
In the second, the lefty flipped the script and raced out to a 3-0 lead. Safiya Carrington came back with three straight wins of her own to get the set back on serve. Both players held serve over the next three games until Lommer broke Carrington on a deuce point in the final game when Carrington's forehand found the net.
LSU came through with a three-set win at No. 4, setting up the final three Michigan singles wins for the team win.
U-M advances to the Sweet 16 for the ninth time since 2010 and will face either Stanford or No. 5 seed Pepperdine on May 16 at 4 p.m. The remainder of the tournament will be held at the USTA Natinoal Campus in Orlando, Fla.
Following are match-by-match results
Singles
No. 1 -- No. 57 Kari Miller (U-M) d. Taylor Bridges (LSU), 3-6, 6-3, 6-0
No. 2 -- Chiara Lommer (U-M) d. Safiya Carrington (LSU), 7-6 (1), 6-4
No. 3 -- Paris Corley (LSU) d. Andrea Cerdan (U-M), 7-6 (1), 6-1
No. 4 -- Maggie Cubitt (LSU) d. Jaedan Brown (U-M), 6-0, 3-6, 7-5
No. 5 -- Alyvia Jones (U-M) d. Eden Richardson (LSU), 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
No. 6 -- Bella Lorenzini (U-M) d. Nina Geissler (LSU), 7-5, 1-6, 7-5
Doubles
No. 1 -- Alyvia Jones/Jaedan Brown (U-M) d. Nina Geissler/Eden Richardson (LSU), 6-3
No. 2 -- Taylor Bridges/Paris Corley (LSU) d. Chiara Lommer/Kari Miller (U-M), 6-4
No. 3 -- Safiya Carrington/Maggie Cubitt (LSU) d. Bella Lorenzini/Andrea Cerdan (U-M), 6-2
Order of Completion: Doubles 3-1-2, Singles 3-2-4-1-5-6
Players Mentioned
