W. Tennis Advances to NCAA Round of 32
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – In its 28th consecutive NCAA appearance, the No. 22 University of Miami women’s tennis team opened the postseason with a 4-1 win over FIU on Saturday afternoon.
Miami (12-7, 8-4 ACC) earned its 22nd straight appearance in the Round of 32, moving to 59-37 all-time in the NCAA team championship after taking down the Panthers (19-3).
“A No. 22 versus a No. 29 matchup in the first round of the tourney is no easy task,” said head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews. “We handled it with poise and grit. I’m proud of these kids.”
The Hurricanes controlled doubles to earn the opening point. The No. 27-ranked duo of Isabella Pfennig and Xinyi Nong dominated the top court, 6-1, over No. 56 Katerina Mandelikova and Oyinlomo Quadre. On court three, Alexa Noel and Audrey Boch-Collins clinched the advantage going into singles with a 6-4 win against Valery Gynina and Kristyna Hranacova.
Going into singles, Xinyi Nong took the first singles court, defeating Kristyna Hranacova, 6-3, 6-1, on court six. Seconds later, No. 10 Alexa Noel slid past Ekaterina Khairutdinova at the top court, claiming the 6-1, 6-3 win against Ekaterina Khairutdinova to go up 3-0.
FIU notched a point after Valery Gynina grabbed the 6-3, 6-4 win over Miami’s Antonia Balzert on court three.
To secure the win and advance the Hurricanes to the Round of 32, No. 115 Audrey Boch-Collins battled for the court-six win. The Las Vegas, Nev., native took down Salma Loudili, 6-4, 6-2, on court five.
Miami now squares off with the winner of the Florida and Stetson match in the Round of 32 matchup slated for Sunday at 12 p.m., with the winner advancing to the Sweet 16 next weekend.
