Union, TWU Move on in NAIA Women's Tennis Championship

Union, TWU Move on in NAIA Women's Tennis Championship
May 18, 2022

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – [BRACKET | SCHEDULE] In its first appearance in women's tennis national championship play, No. 20-seeded St. Thomas (Fla.) upset No. 13 Indiana Tech as the first day of action came to a close.  

In addition to the Bobcats' 4-2 win, Saint Katherine (Calif.) finished out the most exciting match of the championship thus far with a 4-3 victory over Ave Maria (Fla.).

Game Notes & Highlights

  • Similar to the men's championships First Round, the No. 17 team prevailed over the No. 16 team, and it came down to the wire. Saint Katherine took a 1-0 lead after doubles play, but a trio of singles victories, including Kely Oliveira's 7-6 (1), 6-0, at the bottom spot, gave the Gyrenes a narrow 3-2 lead with the end in sight. Then, USK's Laura Eugenio De Hilario posted a gutty 7-6 (6), 2-6, 7-6 (3), win at the top flight, setting up a winner-take-all at the three. In incredible come-from-behind fashion, Chahenda Galal defeated Valentine Colin by a 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (4) fashion, setting up a showdown between the Firebirds and top-seeded Georgia Gwinnett in the Second Round.
  • No. 9 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) needed no drama in its 4-0 sweep of No. 24 IU East (Ind.). The Blue Raiders received wins from Salome Sposetti and Anastasiia Ivanchenko at the bottom two singles flights to run away with the win.
  • No. 12 Cumberlands (Ky.) took a fairly quick 4-1 win over host No. 21 Mobile (Ala.). Down 3-0, Mobile picked up a point at the third flight, courtesy of Sofija Hrovat, but the Patriots clinched at the six as Fan Shiau defeated Emily John, 1-6, 6-1, 6-2, in come-from-behind fashion.
  • In the biggest upset of the first round, No. 20 St. Thomas (Fla.) stunned No. 13 Indiana Tech, 4-2. The Bobcats quickly dispatched the top two flights of doubles play to take the point, but the Warriors stormed back to take a 2-1 lead. Spurred on by Carme Ibanez Navarro's 7-6 (7-5), 7-5, dramatic win over Roshne Arunkumar at the fifth flight, St. Thomas rattled off three consecutive points to clinch the upset.
  • Bolstered by quick doubles wins, No. 14 Southeastern (Fla.) advanced to the second round in 4-0 fashion over No. 19 Midland (Neb.). Abigail Damon posted a near sweep at the sixth flight, taking a 6-1, 6-0, win over Lainie Fanton.
  • No. 11 William Carey (Miss.) enjoyed a 4-0 win over No. 22 Cardinal Stritch (Wisc.). The quick affair ended when Marina Prieto took down Emerson Banning in 7-6 (2), 6-3, fashion.
  • In another 4-0 affair, No. 10 Tennessee Wesleyan swept past No. 23 Southwestern (Kan.). The Bulldogs used a pair of 6-2 wins in doubles action before Astrid Staksrud ended the shutout effort with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Mariana Ochoa at the bottom singles slot.
  • In a 4-1 final, No. 15 Union (Ky.) dispatched No. 18 William Woods to advance. After a pair of narrow 7-5 wins at the bookends of doubles action, the Owls managed to take a point to pull within a 3-1 score, but Karen Kondo ended the match with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Rukshika Wijesooriya.
  • Higher seeds went 6-2 on day one of play.
  • First-time championship qualifiers went 2-1 on Tuesday.