BLACKSBURG, Va. – After dropping the doubles point, Georgia Tech women’s tennis responded by winning four singles matches to capture a 4-1 win at Virginia Tech on Friday. Freshman Taly Licht clinched the victory for the Yellow Jackets in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both teams. The win pushed Georgia Tech to 6-4 overall and 1-0 in league play.
DOUBLES
Virginia Tech squeaked out the doubles point in a tight battle that came down to the final point. The Hokies grabbed the first match on court one, 6-2, but the Jackets quickly evened the doubles field with a victory on court three. Kate Sharabura and Licht partnered together to collect their third dual win of the season, downing Semra Aksu and Linda Ziets-Segura. The opponents stood knotted at 5-5 before the Jackets won the next two games for the match, 7-5.
The doubles point was left to be decided on court two where Alejandra Cruz and Given Roach led against Arina Gamretkaia and Tara Gorinsek, 5-4. But the Hokies claimed the next three games to take the match, 7-5, clinching the doubles point and early match lead for Virginia Tech.
SINGLES
Georgia Tech claimed three first sets in singles play and Sharabura was the first to finish, collecting a straight-set win on court three to put the Yellow Jackets on the scoreboard. Competing against Aksu, Sharabura controlled the opening set, jumping out with a 5-0 lead. After winning the opener, 6-2, Sharabura got behind early in the second set, 1-3, but rallied back and won five consecutive games to take the match, 6-2, 6-3, tying the match at 1-apiece.
Freshman Olivia Carneiro gave Georgia Tech its first lead of the match, winning a straight-set victory on court six. Facing Cartledge, the Jacket gained control in the first set with a 4-1 lead and took the set, 6-2. Cartledge held a 3-2 lead in the second set before Carneiro won four-straight games to take the match, 6-2, 6-3, giving Tech a 2-1 match lead.
Cruz cushioned Georgia Tech’s lead from court two. The Jacket handled the first set against Gorinsek, 6-1, but fell behind a break early in the second set, 1-3. After moving back on serve, 3-3, Cruz and Gorinsek traded games to a 5-all standstill. Cruz broke to go up 6-5 and served out the match, 7-5, to give the Jackets a 3-1 match lead.
Licht clinched the match for Georgia Tech on court four, battling to a three-set win over Gamretkaia. The Hokie won the first set, 6-4, but Licht forced a third set, winning the second, 6-4. In the deciding third set, Licht raced out with a 5-1 advantage and sealed the win, 6-3, to secure the victory for the Yellow Jackets, 4-1.
Georgia Tech continues this ACC-opening road swing, visiting No. 2 Virginia on Sunday. First serve is slated for 12 p.m. in Charlottesville.
RESULTS
Doubles
1. No. 51 Charlotte Cartledge/Ozlem Uslu (VT) def. Kylie Bilchev/Scarlett Nicholson (GT) 6-2
2. Arina Gamretkaia/Tara Gorinsek (VT) def. No. 84 Alejandra Cruz/Given Roach (GT) 7-5*
3. Kate Sharabura/Taly Licht (GT) def. Semra Aksu/Linda Ziets-Segura (VT) 7-5
Order of finish: 1,3,2*
Singles
1. No. 74 Scarlett Nicholson (GT) vs. No. 23 Ozlem Uslu (VT) 4-6, 6-1, 5-3, DNF
2. No. 115 Alejandra Cruz (GT) def. Tara Gorinsek (VT) 6-1, 7-5
3. Kate Sharabura (GT) def. Semra Aksu (VT) 6-2, 6-3
4. Taly Licht (GT) def. Arina Gamretkaia (VT) 4-6, 6-4, 6-3*
5. Given Roach (GT) vs. Laima Frosch (VT) 6-7 (4-7), 6-2, 2-5, DNF
6. Olivia Carneiro (GT) def. Charlotte Cartledge (VT) 6-2, 6-3
Order of finish: 3,6,2,4*
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
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