Sept. 20, 2009
ATLANTA – Sasha Krupina and Lynn Blau earned exciting come-from-behind victories over members of the Georgia women’s tennis team to lead the Yellow Jackets on the final day of the Georgia Tech Fall Invitational at the Bill Moore Tennis Center.
“It was just another successful day for our team,” head coach Bryan Shelton said. “I was impressed with how we competed. It felt like it was April or May and not September. Our fitness really paid off for us throughout the tournament. We have to give [assistant coach] Anca Dumitrescu and [strength coach] Tiffany Allen a lot of credit for how conditioned we were this weekend.”
Krupina dropped her opening set to 41st-ranked Yvette Hyndman of the Bulldogs but fought her way back for a 4-6, 7-6, 6-2 win Sunday.
“Sasha was rock solid to compete that well against one of the better players in the country,” Shelton said. “She just found a way to get it done in convincing fashion.”
Blau earned her second straight come-from-behind victory of the tournament when she defeated No. 108 Cameron Ellis 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5). Blau, who held a 5-2 lead in the third set, outplayed Ellis in the third-set tiebreaker for the win. She finished the tournament 3-0 in singles. Sophomore Hillary Davis registered her third victory of the weekend by closing out the tournament with a 7-6, 6-4 win over Naoka Ueshima of Georgia. Sophomore Viet Ha Ngo dropped a hard-fought match to No. 2 Chelsey Gullickson of Georgia, 0-6, 3-6.
“Christina [Viet Ha Ngo] electrified the team with how well she played in the second set against the No. 2 player in the nation,” Shelton added. “She really gave Sasha and Lynn a charge as they played next to her. Lynn, over the last two days, has really showed a lot of maturity. She is in a completely different place then where she was a year ago. Hillary also had a great weekend and great finish.”
Freshman Elizabeth Kilborn closed out her tournament with a 6-4, 5-7, 10-2 victory over Princeton’s Taylor Marable. Coach Shelton said “Elizabeth had a great weekend and now knows that she can find success on this level in both singles and doubles.”
Miami’s Gabrela Mejia was awarded the 2009 Georgia Tech Invitational singles title after finishing with 15 points in the flighted tournament. Mejia and teammate Laura Vallverdu, ranked No. 35 in the preseason Intercollegiate Tennis Association doubles poll, earned the doubles title.
The Yellow Jackets will next be represented by senior Amanda McDowell and sophomore Irina Falconi at the 2009 Riviera Women’s All-American Tennis Championships in Pacific Palisades, Calif. They will compete in the main singles and doubles draws. The duo will try and defend their doubles title from last year’s championship.
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