CARY, N.C. — The Vanderbilt women’s tennis team rolled through the opening round of the main draw at the ITA All-American Championships, winning all three of its matches on Wednesday.
Senior Célia-Belle Mohr started the day for the Dores, taking the court in singles play for the first time this season. The No. 3-ranked Mohr faced No. 27 Cristina Tiglea of Baylor in round one of the singles main draw. The Commodore pulled away with the initial set 6-4 after a back-and-forth opening four games. She began to overpower Tiglea in the second, winning the first three games of the set. Tiglea crawled back into the contest after taking the next two games for a 3-2 set score. Mohr locked down the rest of play, cruising to a 6-2 set victory to win the match and advance to the round of 32.
“I felt like the really important moments of the match brought out our best tennis today,” assistant coach Jack Findel-Hawkins said. “We’re playing against some of the best players in the country; we can’t be expected to play our best tennis every day. But those that can do that and rise to the occasion are going to be the ones who advance in this tournament. We’ve been able to do that so far.”
Junior Bridget Stammel, ranked No. 34, also opened her singles action in the main draw on Wednesday, matching up against No. 41 Emma Jackson from Duke. Neither player was able to create any separation throughout the first set with both alternating serving game points. Stammel eventually produced the first break of the set, taking a 5-4 lead. Jackson then did the same to even the score at 5-5. Stammel wasted no time in the win-by-two scenario, swiftly taking the next two games to claim the first set 7-5. She slowly chipped away at Jackson in the next, using pinpoint shots on the boundary to wear out her Blue Devil opponent. The Dore punched her ticket to the next round with a 6-3 set victory.
“The girls did a great job today getting through in straight sets,” Findel-Hawkins said. “Spending the least amount of time on the court and being the most efficient will be the most important part of progressing through the tournament. In terms of a game plan, it’s to encourage, to be aggressive in the big moments, and be brave. It gets hard when the pressure is high and score line is tight to continue forcing yourself forward and be the aggressor. But that’s what we will continue to work on this week.”
The last match of the day was a ranked doubles matchup between No. 29 Mohr and freshman Sophia Webster against No. 13 Margaret ‘Meggie’ Navarro and Sara Ziodato of Virginia. Navarro, a junior for the Cavaliers, is the younger sister of tennis pro Emma Navarro, the No. 8-ranked player in the world. Virginia provided the stiffest competition yet, going game for game with Vanderbilt in the first set. Mohr and Webster hung on to secure the opener 7-5. The second set was controlled by powerful serving; both Dores dished out multiple aces en route to a 6-2 victory, sealing the match. The win pushes the duo into tomorrow’s round of 16.
“Overall, I’m just really proud of what the girls were able to do today,” Findel-Hawkins said. “To be able to win all three matches at the main draw at a national event like the All-Americans is a big achievement. We hope to keep moving through this event and getting these opportunities. But right now, it’s about taking it one day at a time. We’re really preparing as best as we can for the next day, and hoping to maximaze that day the best we can. We will give the best in our matches tomorrow and hopefully we can keep progressing on. It’s going to be a big scene for us, and we’re just really excited to see the girls compete and see what they can do.”
Mohr leads off once again for Vanderbilt to start Thursday’s singles round of 32. She is set to take on No. 62 Elza Tomase of Tennessee at 9 a.m. CT. Stammel returns to action at noon tomorrow with her toughest task yet: a matchup against No. 8 Savannah Broadus from Pepperdine. Mohr and Webster are slated to play TCU’s No. 12-ranked Jade Otway and Isabel Pascual at 2 p.m.
