TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Mahak Jain completed a come-from-behind victory to clinch a 4-3 triumph for No. 47 Georgia Tech at No. 44 Florida State on Sunday. The Yellow Jackets won their first Atlantic Coast Conference match of the season with the doubles point and three singles matches.
DOUBLES
Georgia Tech (4-4, 1-1 ACC) and Florida State (6-3, 1-1 ACC) split the first two doubles matches, leaving the decision for the early lead on court one. Tech’s 18th-ranked duo of Carol Lee and Kate Sharabura gave the doubles advantage to the Jackets, cruising to a 6-1 decision over Kianah Motosono and Vic Allen on court two. After the opponents opened on serve at 1-1, the Jackets pocketed the next five games to improve to 7-0 on the season.
Florida State, which is ranked No. 20 in the latest Tennis Channel/USTA top 25 poll, evened the doubles field, winning on court three, 6-2, forcing all eyes to turn to court one where No. 16 Kylie Bilchev and Ava Hrastar were on serve with No. 29 Lesedi Jacobs and Petra Hule. Knotted at 4-4, the Jackets gritted down to take the next two games for a 6-4 victory, clinching the doubles point and early lead for Georgia Tech.
SINGLES
Hrastar dominated in singles action, collecting a straight-set win over Allen on court two. The Jacket took a set lead, claiming the opener, 6-2, and did not drop a game in the second set, 6-0, to give Georgia Tech a 2-0 match lead. Bilchev closed out her match next on court three, extending Tech’s lead to 3-0. On serve at 4-4 in the first set against Jacobs, Bilchev took the next two games to win the first set, 6-4. The freshman raced out with a comfortable lead in the second set, and pocketed the final set, 6-1.
Florida State won the next three singles matches on courts six, one and five, respectively, to tie the match at 3-3. The Seminoles got on the scoreboard when Motosono defeated Monika Dedaj on court six, 6-4, 6-2, and closed their deficit to 3-2 taking a hard-fought win at the top court. Tech’s No. 72 Lee pushed No. 33 Hule to the limit, but fell, 6-4, 6-4, before FSU knotted the score at 3-all on court five.
With both teams needing the final match on court four to secure the win, the Yellow Jackets rallied behind Jain who trailed Anna Arkadianou, 3-1, in the third set. Jain and Arkadianou split the first two sets and FSU looked on track to take the match with the early lead in the final set, but Jain regrouped and reversed a 3-1 deficit into a 5-3 lead. Arkadianou won the next game, but Jain served out the match, 6-4, to clinch the deciding match. It marked the fifth match Jain clinched a match in her career at Georgia Tech.
UP NEXT
Georgia Tech continues this road swing visiting Syracuse on Friday, March 4. First serve is slated for 3 p.m.
DOUBLES
1. No. 16 Kylie Bilchev/Ava Hrastar (GT) def. No. 29 Lesedi Jacobs/Petra Hule (FSU) 6-4
2. No. 18 Carol Lee/Kate Sharabura (GT) def. Kianah Motosono/Vic Allen (FSU) 6-1
3. Olympe Lancelot/Anna Arkadiaou (FSU) def. Gia Cohen/Ruth Marsh (GT) 6-2
Order of finish: 2,3,1
SINGLES
1. No. 33 Petra Hule (FSU) def. No. 72 Carol Lee (GT) 6-4, 6-4
2. Ava Hrastar (GT) def. Vic Allen (FSU) 6-2, 6-0
3. No. 73 Kylie Bilchev (GT) def. Lesedi Jacobs (FSU) 6-4, 6-1
4. Mahak Jain (GT) def. Anna Arkadianou (FSU) 7-5, 3-6, 6-4
5. Olympe Lancelot (FSU) def. Kate Sharabura (GT) 7-5, 7-6 (6)
6. Kianah Motosono (FSU) def. Monika Dedaj (GT) 6-4, 6-2
Order of finish: 2, 3, 6, 1, 5, 4
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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