Syracuse University
University of Louisville
Orange Tennis Defeats Louisville for Fourth ACC Win
3/25/2018 1:41:00 PM | Tennis
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The 32nd-ranked Orange women's tennis team beat 48th-ranked Louisville, 5-2 on Sunday at Drumlins Country Club. Syracuse (12-3 overall, 4-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) won the doubles point and then won three of the first four singles matches to secure the victory over the Cardinals (13-5, 3-4 ACC).
"I could not be more proud of the team," said head coach Younes Limam. "I thought they came in ready to compete, they handled adversity and played very business-like. We are on the right track. Every ACC match is going to be very competitive. We have to be ready for it."
Syracuse won the doubles point with victories at first and third doubles. At No. 1 doubles, 37th-ranked Gabriela Knutson and Miranda Ramirez bested 51st-ranked Abbie Pahz and Mariana Humbert, 6-3. Syracuse's Maria Tritou and Dina Hegab defeated Raven Neely and Maya Smith, 6-2. The second doubles match was suspended after Syracuse won the doubles point with 'Cuse's Anna Shkudun and Sofya Golubovskaya winning 5-2.
Knutson, who is ranked eighth nationally, gave the Orange a 2-0 lead and improved her record to 12-1 (undefeated in ACC play) with a 6-2, 6-3 victory against Aleksandra Mally. After falling behind 2-1 in the first set, Knutson rallied to win 12 of the next 15 games for the victory.
Hegab put Syracuse ahead, 3-1, with a decisive 6-2, 6-2 win over Sena Suswam at sixth singles. The junior is now 10-3 overall and 6-1 in ACC matches.
Louisville scored its first point of the match when Mariana Humberg beat Syracuse's Ramirez, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4). After losing the first set, Ramirez battled back from a 4-2 deficit to force the tie breaker. Ramirez is now 9-5 (2-5 ACC) in 2018.
Shkudun won the deciding match for the Orange with a 6-4, 6-4 victory against Tiffany Huber in the fourth singles match. With the first set tied at four, Shkudun won back-to-back games for the win. She won the second set in the same manner to improve to 7-6 (2-4 ACC).
At third singles, Sofya Golubovskaya increased Syracuse's lead to 5-1 with a 7-5, 6-4 victory against Abbie Pahz. Golubovskaya improved her record to 11-2 (5-2 ACC).
Syracuse's Libi Mesh lost to UL's Raven Neely, 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 6-1, in the fifth singles match. Mesh is 8-6 overall and 1-5 in ACC matches.
Syracuse will play at Pittsburgh on Friday, March 30 at 1 p.m. The Orange returns home to host Georgia Tech at 11 am on Sunday, April 1 at Drumlins Country Club.
"The most important match is the next one," Limam said. "We have to get ready for a tough match at Pitt. They played us very tough last year."
Singles Competition (Order of finish:Â 1,6,2,4,3,5)
1. #8 Gabriela Knutson (SU) def. Aleksandra Mally (UL) 6-2, 6-3
2. Mariana Humberg (UL) def. Miranda Ramirez (SU) 6-2, 7-6 (7-4)
3. Sofya Golubovskaya (SU) def. Abbie Pahz (UL) 7-5, 6-4
4. Anna Shkudun (SU) def. Tiffany Huber (UL) 6-4, 6-4
5. Raven Neely (UL) def. Libi Mesh (SU) 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 6-1
6. Dina Hegab (SU) def. Sena Suswam (UL) 6-2, 6-2
Doubles Competition (Order of finish: 1,3)
1. #37 Gabriela Knutson/Miranda Ramirez (SU) def. #51 Mariana Humberg/Abbie Pahz (UL) 6-3
2. Anna Shkudun/Sofya Golubovskaya (SU) vs. Sena Suswam/Ariana Rodriguez (UL) 5-2, unfinished
3. Maria Tritou/Dina Hegab (SU) def. Raven Neely/Maya Smith (UL) 6-2
Players Mentioned
