ORLANDO, Fla. – Answering an early deficit, No. 43 Christina Rosca knocked out 10th-ranked Isabella Pfennig of Miami 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 on Monday afternoon to reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Singles Championship at the USTA National Campus.
Reaching the third round, Rosca is now the seventh individual Commodore ever to advance to the third round of the NCAA Singles Championship. Vanderbilt has also now had a player reach the Sweet 16 in each of the last five individual singles draws with Frances Altick going to the Sweet 16 in 2016, Sydney Campbell reaching the Sweet 16 in 2017, both Astra Sharma and Fernanda Contreras reaching the Elite Eight and Final Four, respectively, in 2018 with Contreras reaching the Sweet 16 again in 2019.
In Tuesday’s third-round action, Rosca will go up against No. 49 Kelly Chen of Duke at 11 a.m. CT Tuesday. Chen reached the Sweet 16 by virtue of a 6-4, 6-4 victory over eighth-seeded McCartney Kessler of Florida on Monday morning.
“Thankful to be coming through to the Round of 16, my opponent today was such a good fighter and competitor,” Rosca said. “It’s unbelievable that she’s a freshman, she’s going to have an amazing career ahead of her at Miami. I’m thrilled to be able to keep going in this tournament, and I’m really excited about my match Tuesday. Kelly and I have played each other a few times and it’s always been really close matches. I’m certainly happy to still be repping Vandy out here in Orlando.”
She does it ‼️
No. 43 @chrisrosca takes out No. 10 Isabella Pfennig of Miami 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 to reach the Sweet 16. #AnchorDown | #NCAATennis pic.twitter.com/OqO21otMMz
— Vanderbilt Women’s Tennis (@VandyWTennis) May 24, 2021
After trading the first four games of the match, Pfennig went on a run to take the first set 6-2 to put Rosca in a hole heading to the second set. But from there, Rosca gave Pfennig a dose of her own medicine with a second-set run to even the match and send it to a decisive third set.
In the closing frame, the two traded holds early before it was Rosca that ran away down the stretch with breaks of her own to clinch the 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory.
The point that seals it for @chrisrosca. 🔒
For the fifth-straight #NCAATennis singles tournament, Vanderbilt has a player into the Sweet 16.#AnchorDown pic.twitter.com/8vupnlzhYa
— Vanderbilt Women’s Tennis (@VandyWTennis) May 24, 2021
The win gives Rosca 116 career singles wins at Vanderbilt. While unable to reach second place Taka Bertrand’s 124 from 2004-08, Rosca does extend her hold on third place all-time.
“Today was just high quality tennis in hot, humid conditions,” Vanderbilt head coach Aleke Tsoubanos said. “We saw Miami in back January and knew this would be a challenge. Isabella is a heck of a player and she is a true freshman who will only get better at Miami. I give her a ton of credit for a great match.
“Chris did what she has done her entire career at Vanderbilt: played physical, smart, all-court tennis with discipline and desire. She has earned every bit of success that has come her way and I couldn’t be more proud of her. Tomorrow she will try to take another step in this championship against a familiar opponent in Kelly Chen. It should be fantastic tennis.”
Vanderbilt in the Sweet 16 at the NCAA Singles Tournament:
2001 – Julie Ditty (reached Sweet 16)
2004 – Audra Falk (reached quarterfinals)
2005 – Audra Falk (reached Sweet 16)
2016 – Frances Altick (reached Sweet 16)
2017 – Sydney Campbell (reached semifinals)
2018 – Astra Sharma (reached quarterfinals)
2018 – Fernanda Contreras (reached semifinals)
2019 – Fernanda Contraras (reached Sweet 16)
2020 – No Tournament held (COVID-19)
2021 – Christina Rosca (into Tuesday’s Sweet 16)
