THE FLATS – Georgia Tech claimed the doubles point and singles victories at the top two positions to take a 3-0 lead, then held on to defeat Syracuse, 4-2, Sunday afternoon at the Ken Byers Tennis Complex. The Yellow Jackets improved to 9-7 overall and evened its Atlantic Coast Conference mark at 3-3, while the Orange fell to 8-6, 1-6 in the ACC.
DOUBLES
Alexandra Cruz (Mexico City, Mexico) and Given Roach (Cheshunt, England), ranked No. 62 in the nation, clinched the doubles point for Georgia Tech, earning two service breaks in the final three games to overcome the Orange’s Anastasia Sysoeva and Constance Levivier, 6-4.
Meera Jesudason (Berwyn, Pa.) and Taly Licht (Hollywood, Fla.) made quick work of the Syracuse tandem of Monica Wojcik and Serafima Shastova, 6-1 on court 3, finishing first while the other two matches were tied at 3-3. Tech’s No. 1 team of Kyle Bilchev (Ipswitch, England) and Scarlett Nicholson (Toronto, Ontario) outlasted Miyuka Kimoto and Nelly Knezkova, 6-4, closing out the 81st-ranked team with a service break after falling behind 40-love in the final game.
SINGLES
Tech’s top two singles players, No. 83 Nicholson and No. 97 Cruz, cruised to easy victories to stake the Yellow Jackets to a 3-0 lead. Cruz dispatched No. 107 Kimoto, 6-1, 6-3, followed quickly by Nicholson closing out Knezkova, 6-3, 6-2.
But Syracuse threatened to turn the tables down the lineup, getting straight-set victories from Shiori Ito over Olivia Carniero (São Paulo, Brazil) (6-1, 7-6) on court 5 and Serafima Shastova over Roach (7-6, 6-2) on court 3.
That left the match to be decided by Licht at No. 5 and Bilchev at No. 6, both of whom won their opening sets but lost their second. Licht battled to get the clinching point, earning a service break to finish off Sysoeva, 7-5, 1-6, 6-3. No. 6 Bilchev trailed Wojcik, 2-3, in the third set, but the match was unfinished.
Georgia Tech finishes its weekend Sunday by hosting Boston College at 1 p.m. at the Ken Byers Tennis Complex.
Georgia Tech 4, Syracuse 2
Singles competition
- #83 Scarlett Nicholson (GT) def. Nelly Knezkova (SU) – 6-3, 6-2
- #97 Alejandra Cruz (GT) def. #107 Miyuka Kimoto (SU) – 6-1, 6-3
- Serafima Shastova (SU) def. Given Roach (GT) – 7-6 (7-3), 6-2
- Taly Licht (GT) def. Anastasia Sysoeva (SU) – 7-5, 1-6, 6-3
- Shiori Ito (SU) def. Olivia Carneiro (GT) – 6-1, 7-6 (7-2)
- Kylie Bilchev (GT) vs. Monika Wojcik (SU) – 6-2, 4-6, 2-3, unfinished
Order of finish: 3,2,1
Doubles competition
- Kylie Bilchev/Scarlett Nicholson (GT) def. #81 Miyuka Kimoto/Nelly Knezkova (SU) – 6-4
- #62 Alejandra Cruz/Given Roach (GT) def. Anastasia Sysoeva/Constance Levivier (SU) – 6-4
- Meera Jesudason/Taly Licht (GT) def. #75 Monika Wojcik/Serafima Shastova (SU) – 6-1
Order of finish: 2,1,5,3,4
Match Notes:
- Syracuse 8-6, 1-6 ACC
- Georgia Tech 9-7, 3-3 ACC
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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