Two Auburn Tigers earn NCAA All-Tournament honors

Auburn women's tennis sees Angella Okutoyi and Merna Rafaat earn NCAA All-Tournament honors. Sophomore Merna Rafaat and senior Angella Okutoyi earned NCAA All-Tournament honors for doubles. Their performance in the tournament cannot be any better than it was.

The two finished perfectly in tournament play, not dropping a single match in the Tigers' run in the tournament. In the final three rounds of the tournament, Rafaat and Okutoyi only dropped six games total with a 6-4 against LSU, 6-1 against Ohio State, and 6-1 against Texas A&M. For the whole tournament, not a single match was pushed to a tiebreak.

The pair completely dominated throughout the tournament, controlling their matches and being a huge reason for the Tigers' success at securing the doubles point early. Okutoyi also brings home NCAA All-Tournament honors for her effort in singles. The senior only had one match that went unfinished, which was in the opening rounds against Bryant as she was leading 6-4, 2-0 before the Tigers closed out the day to advance.

Throughout the tournament, she had three of her six matches come in straight set victories, coming against Miami in round two 6-3, 6-2, Ohio State in the semifinals 6-4, 6-3, and Texas A&M in the finals 6-2, 6-2. The Tigers finished the season 37-4 with an SEC regular season title, an SEC Championship, and an NCAA runner-up title. It was the best season the program has ever seen, and it comes in just head coach Jordan Szabo's second season.