BERKELEY, Calif. – No. 25 Georgia Tech women’s tennis claimed the doubles point and three singles victories Saturday afternoon to blank Princeton, 4-0, in the consolation match of the ITA Kickoff Weekend. The win moved Tech to 2-1 on the season, while Princeton dropped to 3-2.
Doubles
First serve was delayed over an hour due to heavy fog in the area, but it didn’t impact the Yellow Jackets as strong doubles play lifted Georgia Tech to an early 1-0 match lead against Princeton. Tech’s doubles team of Carol Lee and Kate Sharabura wasted no time collecting a 6-0 victory over Daria Frayman and Neha Valaga on court one to give the Jackets the early advantage in doubles play. The point was clinched on court three where Ava Hrastar teamed up with Rosie Garcia Gross for the first time this season. The pair raced out to a 4-0 lead over Leena Bennetto and Zoe Howard before the Tigers got on the scoreboard. Princeton rallied winning three of the next four games, but couldn’t overcome the Jackets who sealed the victory at 6-3.
On court two, Kylie Bilchev and Alejandra Cruz went unfinished after the point was clinched. The Jackets erased an early 3-0 deficit to Maia Sung and Grace Joyce and battled back to 4-all before play was suspended.
Singles
The Yellow Jackets were led to victory with straight-set singles wins from Mahak Jain, Bilchev and Hrastar. Jain put Tech up 2-0, quickly downing Howard on court three, 6-3, 6-2, before Bilchev cushioned the lead from court two. Facing Valaga, Bilchev earned an early break for a 3-1 lead and it was all she needed as the Jacket took the first set, 6-3. But Valaga gained momentum in the second set, opening with a 4-1 advantage before Bilchev rallied back to knot the set at 5-all. She sealed the victory, 7-5, to give the Jackets a 3-0 match lead.
Hrastar clinched the overall match from court four where she defeated Princeton’s Bennetto, 7-6 (3), 6-3. It was a back-and-forth battle in the opening set as the opponents forced a tiebreak at 6-6. Bennetto took a 3-2 lead to start before Hrastar won the next five points to win the tiebreaker, 7-3. The Jacket carried momentum into the second set, leading 4-2 and pocketing the win, 6-3, to clinch a 4-0 triumph for Georgia Tech.
Georgia Tech continues this stretch away from Atlanta, visiting Illinois on Feb. 3. First serve is slated for 5 p.m.
RESULTS
DOUBLES
1. No. 53 Carol Lee/Kate Sharabura (GT) def. Daria Frayman/Neha Velaga (Princeton) 6-0
2.Kylie Bilchev/Alejandra Cruz (GT) vs. Maia Sung/Grace Joyce (Princeton) 4-4, DNF
3. Rosie Garcia Gross/Ava Hrastar (GT) def. Leena Bennetto/Zoe Howard (Princeton) 6-3*
Order of finish: 1,3*
*Clinched the doubles point
SINGLES
1.No. 10 Carol Lee (GT) vs. No. 4 Daria Frayman (Princeton) 6-3, 1-6, 1-0, DNF
2. No. 111 Kylie Bilchev (GT) def. Neha Velaga (Princeton) 6-3, 7-5
3. No. 109 Mahak Jain (GT) def. Zoe Howard (Princeton) 6-3, 6-2
4. Ava Hrastar (GT) def. Leena Bennetto (Princeton) 7-6 (3), 6-3^
5. No. 104 Alejandra Cruz (GT) vs. Maia Sung (Princeton) 7-5, 3-3, DNF
6. Rosie Garcia Gross (GT) vs. Grace Joyce (Princeton) 4-6, 6-5, DNF
Order of finish: 3,2,4^
^Clinched the overall match
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 Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on Twitter (@GT_WTEN), Instagram (GT_WTEN), Facebook (Georgia Tech Women’s Tennis) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com
