Auburn's resurgent volleyball team swept past Alabama at the Student Activities Center on Friday, moving to 13-8 overall and 5-5 in the Southeastern Conference.
It was the Tigers' first win over Alabama since 2006 and just their second since 1999.
“It was a good match. and I thought we came out really prepared,” Auburn coach Wade Benson said. "You could see it in the energy level of the team. We let down in the third set for a little bit, which is fairly typical for our youth. We were able to come back, and that’s a positive thing for us.”
The Tigers were led by sophomore Kelly Fidero, who finished with 11 kills and hit .348 overall. Junior Morgan Johns and freshman Sarah Bullock each recorded nine kills, while sophomore setter Christina Solverson tallied a team-high nine digs and 19 assists.
“We’ve really worked hard up to this point and have grown up a lot this season,” Johns said. “We showed maturity tonight. The team knew we could win, and we pulled it off in front of a fun crowd.”
Alabama fell to 6-15 overall and 4-7 in the SEC.
SWIMMING AND DIVING
Tigers open season with victory over LSU
The Auburn swimming and diving team tallied five NCAA “B” cut times on Friday as the Tigers defeated SEC rival LSU at the LSU Natatorium. The men topped LSU, 167-133, and the women came away with the 177-122 win.
“It was great getting the win with this being the first meet of the season,” Auburn coach Brett Hawke said. “The team started out strong and battled through to the end. We still have a lot of work to do if we want to reach our goals at the end of the season.
Auburn’s women won nine individual events, led by seniors Melissa
Marik and Ava Ohlgren and freshman Katie Gardocki with two wins each.
Marik won the 100 back with a B cut time of 54.48 and took the win in
the 100 free with a time of 50.34. Ohlgren picked up wins in the 100 fly
(54.92) and 200 IM (2:02.03) and recorded a B cut time of 2:00.02 with a
second-place finish in the 200 fly.
WOMEN'S GOLF
Clanton leads Tigers in NCAA Fall Preview
Auburn junior Cydney Clanton carded five birdies Friday in the first round of the NCAA Fall Preview, finishing the day in a tie for third with a 2-under-par 72 as the third-ranked Tigers completed the first round in sixth place with an 11-over-par 299.
Hosted by the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, the NCAA Fall Preview is a 54-hole tournament being played at the par-72, 6,325-yard Country Club of Landfall Pete Dye Course, the site of the 2010 NCAA Championship. The three-day tournament features nine teams ranked in the GolfWorld top-10 and 17 ranked in the top-25.
“We got off on a slow start to the day, but we had some good golf on the front nine to get us back into it,” said Auburn head coach Kim Evans. “This is a tough golf course, there were just a handful of scores under par today, so it was great to see Cydney Clanton come out here and get a really good round in on the first day.”
EQUESTRIAN
Auburn is ranked No. 1 nationally in coaches' poll
The Auburn equestrian team (4-1) has moved to the top spot in the latest Women's Intercollegiate Equestrian National Coaches Poll. The Tigers moved from third to first after their impressive win against then fifth-ranked and defending Western national champion Texas A&M on Oct. 16.
“We are always proud to be considered a top team, but the busiest times
are yet to come,” said Auburn head coach Greg Williams. “I'm just happiest that we are winning in both Hunt Seat and Western.”
The Tigers replaced top-ranked South Carolina (1-1) after defeating
eighth-ranked Texas Christian 13-6 and sixth-ranked Texas A&M 10-8.
WOMEN'S TENNIS
Strong start for Tigers in Southern Regional
The Auburn women’s tennis team opened up day one of the 2009 ITA Southern Regional with three singles victories as well as a pair of doubles victories. Play was affected due to rain in the Auburn area, as a majority of the matches on day one were played indoors at Yarborough Tennis Center until the weather improved enough later in the day for play to move outside.
All-American Fani Chifchieva opened up singles play for the Tigers by defeating UAB’s Evelien Strijker in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4. The Tigers’ second victory of the day came from Myrthe Molenveld as she downed Mississippi State’s Natalia Mayuk 6-4, 6-1. Freshman Plamena Kurteva picked up Auburn’s final singles victory of day one as she defeated Soledad Podlipnik of Mississippi State, 6-3, 6-3.
Chifchieva picked up her second win of the day in doubles play, teaming up with Caroline Thornton to defeat the LSU tandem of Kaitlin Burns and Ebie Wilson, 8-5. Molenveld also accounted for a pair of wins on the afternoon, as she and her partner Paulina Schippers defeated Louisiana-Lafayette’s Briggitt Marcovich and Julie Mazinova in a tie-break, 9-8 (7-5.)
