W. Tennis Drops Road Decision at No. 20 UCF

ORLANDO, Fla. – The University of Miami women’s tennis team fell to No. 20 UCF, 4-0, Saturday afternoon at the USTA National Campus.

Miami (2-2) held leads on all three remaining courts, but could not keep play going on any of the three it dropped a first set in singles, as the homestanding Knights nixed any comeback hopes in a match that started 75 minutes late and was moved indoors due to weather.

“UCF was just better than us today,” Miami head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews said. “They played more physical and jumped on the offense early. We have to get back on the practice courts and work.”

The Knights earned the first point of the match by taking both completed doubles matches. First, sixth-ranked Marie Mattel and Rebeka Stolmar downed Estela Perez-Somarriba and Florencia Urrutia, 6-1.

The final two matches were both close, but moments later, No. 60 Ksenia Kuznetsova and Valeriya Zeleva finished off a 6-4 win over Daevenia Achong and Isabella Pfennig. The Hurricanes’ other duo, Diana Khodan and Maya Tahan, held a 5-4 lead—and a 30-0 edge in the 10th game—on Nadja Bay Christians and Evgeniya Levashova when play was halted.

Each team won three first sets in singles competition, but the first three players to close out a match were all from UCF (6-2) and the remaining contests were not played out.

Jaleesa Leslie defeated Khodan, 6-2, 7-5, and then No. 95 Levashova topped Tahan, 6-1, 6-4. In a top-100 showdown, No. 67 Veleva edged No. 87 Achong, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3), to close out the match.

Second-ranked Perez-Somarriba was three points away from victory in a top-50 matchup with No. 42 Stolmar when play stopped, as she held a 6-4, 5-4 lead, with her opponent serving at 15-30.

After taking a marathon first-set tiebreaker, Pfennig led, 7-6 (13-11), 1-2, against Kuznetsova, while Urrutia had a 7-6 (8-6), 3-3 edge versus No. 72 Mattel.

Up next for the Hurricanes is the start of their ACC slate, which begins Saturday at noon at ninth-ranked Georgia Tech in Atlanta.

To keep up with the University of Miami women’s tennis team on social media, follow @CanesWTennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

RESULTS

Doubles Competition
1. No. 6 Marie Mattel/Rebeka Stolmar (UCF) def. Estela Perez-Somarriba/Florencia Urrutia (UM), 6-1
2. No. 60 Ksenia Kuznetsova/Valeriya Zeleva (UCF) def. Daevenia Achong/Isabella Pfennig (UM), 6-4
3. Diana Khodan/Maya Tahan (UM) vs. Nadja Bay Christians/Evgeniya Levashova (UCF), 5-4, unf.

Singles Competition
1. No. 2 Estela Perez-Somarriba (UM) vs. No. 42 Rebeka Stolmar (UCF), 6-4, 5-4, unf.
2. No. 67 Valeriya Zeleva (UCF) def. No. 87 Daevenia Achong (UM), 6-3, 7-6 (7-3)
3. No. 95 Evgeniya Levashova (UCF) def. Maya Tahan (UM), 6-1, 6-4
4. Isabella Pfennig (UM) vs. Ksenia Kuznetsova (UCF), 7-6 (13-11), 1-2, unf.
5. Florencia Urrutia (UM) vs. No. 72 Marie Mattel (UCF), 7-6 (8-6), 3-3, unf.
6. Jaleesa Leslie (UCF) vs. Diana Khodan (UM), 6-2, 7-5