SYRACUSE, N.Y. – No. 37 Georgia Tech women’s tennis responded from dropping the doubles point to win five singles matches to collect a 5-2 victory at Syracuse Friday afternoon.
DOUBLES
The Yellow Jackets (5-4, 2-1 ACC) dropped a hard-fought doubles point, giving Syracuse (6-4, 0-3 ACC) the early match lead. The Orange quickly took the edge in doubles, winning 6-2 on court three, but Georgia Tech was battling on the top two courts. Competing on court two, Tech’s No. 18-ranked duo of Carol Lee and Kate Sharabura led 3-1 over Miyuka Kimoto and Polina Kozyreva, but the Orange rallied to even the score at 4-4. On serve at 5-all, Lee and Sharabura pocketed the next two games and Sharabura served out the match for a 7-5 triumph.
The doubles point was decided on court one where No. 16 Kylie Bilchev and Ava Hrastar faced Shiori Ito and Sofya Treshcheva. It was a back-and-forth battle in the early going as the teams stood on serve at 5-5. The Orange gained a 6-5 edge, but the Jackets rallied to force a tiebreak at 6-all. Bilchev and Hrastar erased an early deficit in the tiebreak and moved back to 3-3, but the Orange won the next three points for a 6-3 advantage. Tech rallied late, setting up a 6-5 score, but the Orange held strong, winning 7-5 to secure the doubles point.
SINGLES
Trailing 1-0 in the match, Georgia Tech would need to win four singles matches to rally for the victory. Competing on court five, Gia Cohen evened the match, collecting a straight-set singles win over Ito, 6-2, 6-1. The senior raced out with a 3-0 lead to open the first set and never looked back to pocket the match. Lee handed Tech its first lead of the day, cruising to a win on court one over Kimoto. Improving to 8-1 in dual play, Lee pocketed a tight first set, 6-3, after winning the final three games, and did not drop a game in the second set, 6-0, to give the Jackets a 2-1 match lead.
Georgia Tech won the next three singles matches to finish to seal the victory. Mahak Jain cushioned Tech’s lead on court four, downing Zeynep Erman, 6-2, 6-1. After winning the first set, 6-1, the sophomore opened the final set, 5-0, and took the match with a 6-1 victory. Bilchev clinched the match for the Jackets on court three. The freshman split the first two sets, 6-1, 1-6, against Kozyreva, forcing a third set. Bilchev opened the third set with a 2-1 lead and continued to build her advantage, never dropping another game, clinching the match at 4-1.
Sharabura rounded out Tech’s victories in singles action on court six. Facing Fonte, Sharabura battled to a three-set decision. Sharabura gained a set advantage over Fonte, 6-0, but the Orange evened the match, winning the second set, 6-2. Knotted at 2-2 in the final set, Sharabura took a 4-3 lead and sealed the win at 6-3.
Syracuse won its only singles match on court two as Viktoriya Kanapatskaya picked up a super tiebreak decision against Hrastar, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 1-0 (10-7).
UP NEXT
Georgia Tech closes out the four-match road swing at Boston College on Sunday. First serve is slated for 10 a.m. in Weymouth, Mass.
DOUBLES
1. Shiori Ito/Sofya Treshcheva (SYR) def. No. 16 Kylie Bilchev/Ava Hrastar (GT) 7-6 (7-5)
2. No. 18 Carol Lee/Kate Sharabura (GT) def. Miyuka Kimoto/Polina Kozyreva (SYR) 7-5
3. Ines Fonte/Viktoriya Kanapatskaya (SYR) def. Gia Cohen/Ruth Marsh (GT) 6-2
Order of finish: 3,2,1
SINGLES
1. No. 72 Carol Lee (GT) def. Miyuka Kimoto (SYR) 6-3, 6-0
2. Viktoriya Kanapatskaya (SYR) def. Ava Hrastar (GT) 6-4, 6-7 (5), 1-0 (10-7)
3. No. 73 Kylie Bilchev (GT) def. Polina Kozyreva (SYR) 6-1, 1-6, 6-1
4. Mahak Jain (GT) def. Zeyep Erman (SYR) 6-2, 6-1
5. Gia Cohen (GT) def. Shiori Ito (SYR) 6-2, 6-1
6. Kate Sharabura (GT) def. Ines Fonte (SYR) 6-0, 2-6, 6-3
Order of finish: 5,1,4,3,6,2
Alexander-Tharpe Fund
The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Support The Swarm Fund, which helps Georgia Tech athletics offset the significant financial challenges associated with Covid-19, and the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
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