Salazar, Knutson Claim ITA Regional Titles

Friday, October 21

Syracuse University

ITA Northeast Regionals

10/25/2016 7:00:00 PM | Tennis

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Syracuse women's tennis team earned two titles from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Northeast Regional tournament this week. Valeria Salazar claimed the singles crown and Salazar and Gabriela Knutson won the doubles championship.

"Congratulations to Valeria on a great week," said head coach Younes Limam. "It's very difficult to win this tournament with so many great players, but Valeria showed so much heart, grit and consistency. We have always been proud of the way she competes and conducts herself, but this fall she has been leading our team and has been very committed to the process."

Salazar was seeded fifth in the tournament and defeated opponents from Massachusetts, St. John's, Penn and Boston College on the way to finals. In the championship she faced Jessica Livianu of St. John's, whom she defeated 6-2, 6-3. The senior won all of her singles matches in straight sets.

"We are also very proud of the way Gabriela and Valeria worked together through the doubles bracket," Limam said. "They showed resilience throughout the tournament and played their best in the finals."

Knutson and Salazar teamed up in the doubles portion of the tournament as the No. 1 overall seed. En route to the final, they topped opponents from Massachusetts, Farleigh Dickinson, Columbia and Harvard. In the final, they defeated Ashley Zhu and Kana Daniel of Penn, 6-2, 6-2.

With the results, Salazar has now qualified for the ITA National Indoor Championships as a singles player and she and Knutson have qualified as a doubles team. The tournament begins Thursday, Nov. 4.

The Orange sent five members to participate in the tournament hosted by Yale University. All but one player advanced at least one round in the competition.

"Valeria is a player who has had a big impact on our program," Limam said. "She helped the team make the NCAA tournament for the first time and she made the NCAA in doubles. This year she is on the path for becoming an All-American."

It was the second singles title for Salazar this season after claiming the crown at the Columbia Invitational earlier in September.

Syracuse will wrap up its fall schedule at the Harvard Invitational on Nov. 4.

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