WINTER PARK, FL (March 21, 2023) -- The Tufts University women's tennis team played a pair of strong opponents in their first matches of spring break, dropping a 6-1 decision to Division I University of Central Arkansas this morning before falling to Division II Rollins University 5-2 later in the afternoon.
Match 1: UCA 6, Tufts 1
The Jumbos battled hard in doubles action against the Bears, winning at No. 2 as
Sophie Wax and
Zoe Kava were able to pick up a 6-1 victory to start the match.
Madeline Suk and
Caroline Garrido were moved up to No. 1 doubles, but dropped a very competitive match 6-3.
The final match to decide the doubles' point was at No. 3, and
Nikki Kintiroglou and
Stephanie Woodbury were bested by Nicole Ross and Jaeun Lee 6-2.
Up 1-0 heading to singles, Suk played a fantastic match at No. 4 singles against Sumomo Hamanaga, winning the first set 6-1. After falling 7-5 in the second set, Hamanaga was able to outlast Suk in the super-tiebreaker 13-11 to put the Bears up 2-0.
Ting-An Chen would earn a win over Woodbury at No. 6 to put the Bears up 3-0, and the clinching point for Central Arkansas came at No. 1 singles as Wax was bested 6-3, 6-2. The lone singles victory for Tufts came at No. 5, as Kava was a double victor after topping Konomi Miyakawa 6-3, 6-1 to up her winning streak to three matches.
Rebecca Lim was topped at No. 3 singles 6-4, 6-2, and the final match of the day was a marathon nail biter as
Rachel Cranley rallied with a 6-2 win in the second set but fell in the third 6-3 to finish the match.
Match 2: Rollins 5, Tufts 2
The heat and humidity of Florida played a role in the nightcap for the Jumbos, playing in their second match of the afternoon. Tufts would pick up the doubles' point in the second match of the day, thanks to wins at No. 3 and No. 2 pairs play.
Kava continued her dynamic play with another win, teaming with Wax to top Eve Wasil and Polina Ligay 6-2 at No. 2 doubles. The final match to finish was at No. 3, and Cranley and
Lucy Mitchell combined to knock off Erin Yaroshak and Milla Falster 7-5 to put the Jumbos up 1-0 going to singles.
The Tars would even the match at a win apiece, as
Casey Cummings was forced to reture up 4-1 in the second set. Rollins gained its first lead with a 6-1, 6-3 win at No. 1 singles by Goergina Groth over Wax, and Cranley was edged by Katie Groves 7-5, 7-5 at the No. 2 position.
Tufts was able to fend off the Tars for another match, as Kava won her fourth match of the day with a 7-5, 7-6 (5) win at No. 4 singles to pull Tufts to within one at 3-2. The deciding point came at No. 3 singles, as Vlasova knocked off Mitchell 6-4, 6-2 to clinch the win for Rollins.
The final match of the day finished up at No. 5 singles, as
Rebecca Lim won the first set but Falster came back to rally for a 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 win.
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The Jumbos (2-4) will take on Eastern Florida State College Thursday morning at 11 a.m. in Cocoa, FL.
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