University of Memphis Athletics
Wednesday, April 17
Orlando, Fla.
8 a.m.
University of Memphis
4
vs
0
Temple
Photo by: Joe Murphy
Women's tennis opens American Championships with sweep of Temple
Apr 17, 2019 | Women's Tennis
ORLANDO, Fla. – Memphis women's tennis opened the 2019 American Tennis Championships with a 4-0 sweep against Temple Wednesday morning at the USTA National Campus.
For the eighth time in the last 10 matches, the eight-seeded Tigers (13-9) claimed the doubles point to earn the early edge. Straight set wins to begin singles play built a 3-0 match lead, while Alisha Reayer erased a first-set deficit to provide the match-clinching victory in three sets.
With the win, Memphis earned a spot in The American Tennis Championships quarterfinal round, where the Tigers will face No. 1 seed UCF. First serve against the Knights is set for Thursday at 11 a.m. (CT).
"Our kids showed a lot of fight today – fighting back in sets and battling hard for every game," Head Coach Hayden Perez said. "I'm proud of their effort and their mindset. They handled some things they can't control really well. We're looking forward to playing a tough UCF team tomorrow."
Josephine Cao and Claire Sullivan were first off in doubles after a 6-2 victory to start the day. Temple (13-7) evened the point on court 3, but sophomore duo Reayer and Laura Bente posted a 7-5 doubles-clinching victory at the No. 1 position.
Memphis and Temple split the opening six sets in singles action, but the Tigers silenced any hint of an Owl comeback bid by posting five second-set victories.
Juniors Sullivan and Katherine Cao made quick work on courts 4 and 5, respectively, in straight sets to push the Tigers' lead to 3-0. Cao won her fifth decision in the last six matches behind a 6-3, 6-1 effort, while Sullivan snapped a five-match singles skid with a 6-2, 6-2 victory.
At the top spot, Reayer narrowly dropped her opening set but rebounded with a 6-0 win in the second frame. The Reading, England native used that momentum to record a 6-2 win in the third set and seal the sweep.
RESULTS
Singles
1. Alisha Reayer (MEM) def. Ruoyu Chen (TEM), 5-7, 6-0, 6-2
2. Laura Bente (MEM) vs. Stefaniya Surikova (TEM), 7-5, 5-7, 1-1, unfinished
3. Aleks Topalovic (MEM) vs. Chunan Xiang (TEM), 6-7(1), 6-2, unfinished
4. Claire Sullivan (MEM) def. Oleksandra Doroshenko (TEM), 6-2, 6-2
5. Katherine Cao (MEM) def. Yining Tian (TEM), 6-3, 6-1
6. Lina Hohnhold (MEM) vs. Cecilia Castelli (TEM), 2-6, 6-2, unfinished
(Order of finish: 5, 4, 1)
Doubles
1. Bente/Reayer (MEM) def. Chen/Surikova (TEM), 7-5
2. J. Cao/Sullivan (MEM) def. Boz/Patch (TEM), 6-2
3. Doroshenko/Xiang (TEM) def. K. Cao/Davies (MEM), 6-2
(Order of finish: 2, 3, 1)
For the eighth time in the last 10 matches, the eight-seeded Tigers (13-9) claimed the doubles point to earn the early edge. Straight set wins to begin singles play built a 3-0 match lead, while Alisha Reayer erased a first-set deficit to provide the match-clinching victory in three sets.
With the win, Memphis earned a spot in The American Tennis Championships quarterfinal round, where the Tigers will face No. 1 seed UCF. First serve against the Knights is set for Thursday at 11 a.m. (CT).
"Our kids showed a lot of fight today – fighting back in sets and battling hard for every game," Head Coach Hayden Perez said. "I'm proud of their effort and their mindset. They handled some things they can't control really well. We're looking forward to playing a tough UCF team tomorrow."
Josephine Cao and Claire Sullivan were first off in doubles after a 6-2 victory to start the day. Temple (13-7) evened the point on court 3, but sophomore duo Reayer and Laura Bente posted a 7-5 doubles-clinching victory at the No. 1 position.
Memphis and Temple split the opening six sets in singles action, but the Tigers silenced any hint of an Owl comeback bid by posting five second-set victories.
Juniors Sullivan and Katherine Cao made quick work on courts 4 and 5, respectively, in straight sets to push the Tigers' lead to 3-0. Cao won her fifth decision in the last six matches behind a 6-3, 6-1 effort, while Sullivan snapped a five-match singles skid with a 6-2, 6-2 victory.
At the top spot, Reayer narrowly dropped her opening set but rebounded with a 6-0 win in the second frame. The Reading, England native used that momentum to record a 6-2 win in the third set and seal the sweep.
RESULTS
Singles
1. Alisha Reayer (MEM) def. Ruoyu Chen (TEM), 5-7, 6-0, 6-2
2. Laura Bente (MEM) vs. Stefaniya Surikova (TEM), 7-5, 5-7, 1-1, unfinished
3. Aleks Topalovic (MEM) vs. Chunan Xiang (TEM), 6-7(1), 6-2, unfinished
4. Claire Sullivan (MEM) def. Oleksandra Doroshenko (TEM), 6-2, 6-2
5. Katherine Cao (MEM) def. Yining Tian (TEM), 6-3, 6-1
6. Lina Hohnhold (MEM) vs. Cecilia Castelli (TEM), 2-6, 6-2, unfinished
(Order of finish: 5, 4, 1)
Doubles
1. Bente/Reayer (MEM) def. Chen/Surikova (TEM), 7-5
2. J. Cao/Sullivan (MEM) def. Boz/Patch (TEM), 6-2
3. Doroshenko/Xiang (TEM) def. K. Cao/Davies (MEM), 6-2
(Order of finish: 2, 3, 1)
Team Stats
#1 Doubles Match
#2 Doubles Match
#3 Doubles Match
Order of Finish:
2,3,1
#1 Singles Match
123
Ruoyu Chen / 0 [TEM]
702
566
#2 Singles Match
1234
Stefaniya Surikova / 0 [TEM]
571UF
7510
#3 Singles Match
123
Chunan Xiang / 0 [TEM]
72UF
660
#4 Singles Match
12
O. Doroshenko / 0 [TEM]
22
66
#5 Singles Match
12
Yining Tian / 0 [TEM]
31
66
#6 Singles Match
12
Cecilia Castelli / 0 [TEM]
62
26
Order of Finish:
4,5,1
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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