Achong Advances to Milwaukee Tennis Classic Championship
By Alex Schwartz
HurricaneSports.com
Sunday Results | Fall Stats | Saturday Recap | Friday Recap
MEQUON, Wis. – Daevenia Achong of the University of Miami women’s tennis team won a pair of matches Sunday at the Mequon Elite Sports Club to reach the Milwaukee Tennis Classic championship finale.
Meanwhile, Selma Cadar came up just short of joining her in the championship, claiming one three-set victory before dropping a second to bow out in the semifinals of her first collegiate tournament.
“I’m very proud of Selma and her [play at this] tournament,” Miami head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews said. “Daev will have a great match tomorrow. I’m looking forward to a strong ending.”
Achong and Cadar defeated players from the same team, LSU, in the quarterfinals to begin competition Sunday.
The first to earn a win was No. 80 Achong, a sophomore from Geleen, Netherlands. Seeded fifth in the draw, Achong rolled past second-seeded Nina Geissler, 6-3, 6-4.
Cadar played a lengthy match against a fellow freshman, sixth-seeded Safiya Carrington, and walked away with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory.
With those two wins, Achong and Cadar combined to eliminate three of the draw’s top six seeds, including each of the top two, as the latter downed top-seeded Csilla Fodor of Purdue Saturday.
In the semifinals Sunday afternoon, Achong and Cadar again took on foes from the same school, this time USC.
Achong turned in a dominant showing against No. 102 Danielle Willson, losing just four games in a 6-2, 6-2 victory. She has dropped only 20 games over her five straight-set triumphs thus far in 2019-20, all in Wisconsin.
Cadar played another long match in the semifinals, this time forcing the split before coming up short in the decider. The Bucharest, Romania, native fell to No. 50 Angela Kulikov, seeded No. 13, in a 5-7, 6-2, 2-6 result.
Achong will now square off against Kulikov in the tournament final Sunday at 10:30 a.m. ET at the Western Racquet Club in Elm Grove, Wis., with a wild card spot in the prestigious Oracle ITA National Fall Championships.
Through three days of fall competition, Miami’s seven players have combined for a 22-4 record, including a 20-3 ledger in singles action.
For more information on the Milwaukee Tennis Classic, including a live stats link, click HERE.
To keep up with the University of Miami women’s tennis team on social media, follow @CanesWTennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
SUNDAY RESULTS
Singles Main Draw – Quarterfinals
No. 80 [5] Daevenia Achong (UM) def. [2] Nina Geissler (LSU), 6-3, 6-4
Selma Cadar (UM) def. [6] Safiya Carrington (LSU), 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
Singles Main Draw – Semifinals
No. 80 [5] Daevenia Achong (UM) def. No. 102 Danielle Willson (USC), 6-2, 6-2
No. 50 [13] Angela Kulikov (USC) def. Selma Cadar (UM), 7-5, 2-6, 6-2
MONDAY SCHEDULE
Singles Main Draw – Final
10: 30 a.m. ET: No. 80 [5] Daevenia Achong (UM) vs. No. 50 [13] Angela Kulikov (USC)
