AUBURN, A.L. – The Bryant women's tennis team fell to the No. 2 seeded Auburn Tigers by a final score of 4-0 in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday afternoon.  

The Tigers clinched the doubles point to start the match. The No. 2 doubles team of Angella Okutoyi and Merna Refaat from Auburn defeated Lisa Dugec and Lucia Pino. Ashton Bowers and Ekaterina Khairutdinova took care of business at No. 3 doubles for Auburn, taking down Yahli Noy and Laura Stypula.

Auburn carried the momentum into singles play, going 3-0 to secure the 4-0 win. Ashton Bowers, Ava Esposito, and Eva Ionescu swept their matches at 4-6 singles against Maria Jose Hernandez, Mila Martinez, and Lisa Dugec.

Despite the loss, the Bulldogs battled at No.1-3 singles. Noy went toe-to-toe with the ITA No. 16 player in the nation DJ Bennett, trailing 6-5 before the match was called. Vela battled tough at No. 2 singles, trailing 2-0 after dropping the first set. Stypula hung in at No. 3 singles, trailing 4-2 after losing the first set.

Bryant finishes the season with a 17-8 overall record. They won back-to-back OVC titles and made two straight NCAA tournament appearances.

Match Information
Final: Auburn 4, Bryant 0
Records: Bryant (17-8) | Auburn (33-3)
Location: Yarbrough Tennis Center, Auburn, AL
Date: Friday, May 1^st, 2026

Doubles (AUB wins 1-0)
No. 2 Bennett/Esposito (AUB) vs. Vela/Hernandez (BRY) 5-1, unfinished.
No. 8 Okutoyi/Refaat (AUB) def. Pino/Dugec (BRY) 6-1
Bowers/Khairutdinova (AUB) def. Noy/Stypula (BRY) 6-1

Singles (AUB wins 3-0)
No. 16 DJ Bennett (AUB) vs. Yahli Noy (BRY) 6-5, unfinished.
Angella Okutoyi (AUB) vs. Natalia Vela (BRY) 6-4, 2-0, unfinished.
Merna Refaat (AUB) vs. Laura Stypula (BRY) 6-1, 4-2, unfinished.
Ashton Bowers (AUB) def. Maria Jose Hernandez (BRY) 6-0, 6-0
Ava Esposito (AUB) def. Mila Martinez (BRY) 6-0, 6-0
Eva Ionescu (AUB) def. Lisa Dugec (BRY) 6-0, 6-1

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