No. 27 Mississippi State (11-6, 2-5) couldn't hold the Auburn women's tennis team at home Thursday, as the Tigers advanced to a 17-4 (5-2) record with a 5-2 victory over the Bulldogs.
Auburn fell behind at the beginning of the match by dropping the doubles point. Pleun Burgmans and Alizee Michaud dropped their first doubles match of the season against Madison Harrison and Kristina Vozniak. Caroline Turner and Paula de Man fell 6-1 for Mississippi State to clinch the point, making Alannah Griffin and Andie Dikosavljevic's 5-3 lead a bust.
"Mississippi State is a tough team and we knew we had to be ready for a dog fight," said Auburn coach Lauren Spencer. "We didn't come out very well in doubles, but I was proud of how we fought back."
In singles, Griffin moved to 5-0 in SEC play on the season with a 6-4, 6-4 win over No. 100 Anastasia Rentouli. De Man tied the match at 2-2 when she defeated Vozniak 6-3, 7-6 on court five.
Michaud pulled through with an upset over No. 13 Jasmine Lee 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 and Burgmans clinched the match for Auburn with her 82nd singles victory. Burgmans is now four wins away from becoming the all-time wins leader in program history.
"I think the loss at Arkansas this week really fueled (Michaud) to play her best tennis every day," said Spencer. "I was proud of the way she stayed aggressive and beat a top-20 opponent."
The Tigers will continue to work their way down the schedule by facing another ranked opponent, No. 39 Ole Miss, Sunday at the Yarbrough Tennis Center, with the first match set to start at 1 p.m.
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