It only took five years at Auburn for women's tennis coach Lauren Spencer to make history.
Saturday, Feb. 20, she led her No. 35 Tigers to victory for the 70th time, with a win over North Florida. The victory helped Spencer top all coaches before her and made her the all-time winningest coach in program history.
The Groesbeck, Texas, native was named head coach Oct. 6, 2011. Since then, she has led Auburn to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances in 2013, 2014 and 2015 and back-to-back All-American honors for doubles duo Pleun Burgmans and Emily Flickinger.
"Early in my coaching career, one of my mentors told me that to be successful, it's all about who you surround yourself with," Spencer said.
Before arriving at Auburn, Spencer — then Longbotham Meisner — spent five seasons at the helm of Southern Methodist University's women's tennis program. There she led SMU to a NCAA Sweet 16 in 2011 and the team's first-ever Conference USA Tournament championship in 2009.
She was named the 2011 Intercollegiate Tennis Association Texas Region Coach of the Year for her accomplishments.
Taking the helm for Auburn, Spencer flipped the Tigers to have the best season in program history one year after her arrival.
The Tigers closed 2013 ranked 25th by the ITA, the highest program standing since 1996, and was also ranked second in the Southern Region.
Auburn also earned checkmarks in the win column in the NCAA and SEC tournaments for the first time since 2008 and 2009. The Tigers even reached the No. 14 spot during the season.
"I have really surrounded myself with a tremendous coaching staff, a fantastic support staff and my family and friends," Spencer said. "Most importantly, the girls that I have had the privilege to coach have been tremendous to work with."
With 119 games under her belt at Auburn and 12 this season, Spencer continues to coach a group that is a force to be reckoned with. Sitting at 11-1, the Tigers advanced to the prestigious Blue Gray National Tennis Classic in Montgomery, Alabama.
Auburn mounted a huge comeback victory in the capital city over No. 11 Oklahoma State, advancing to a 12-1 record. The triumph was short lived, as the Tigers fell to No. 10 Pepperdine the final day of tournament play. Now 12-2, Auburn will move on to begin SEC play at home against Texas A&M and LSU.
"It’s not just my accomplishment, but it’s also an accomplishment for our program and what we are trying to do here with our program," Spencer said. "I just thank everyone who helped me along the way.”
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