GREENVILLE, S.C. — Behind sophomore Aneesa Lee, who advanced to the finals of the Debbie Southern Furman Fall Classic, Vanderbilt women’s tennis won a total of nine matches Saturday in Greenville, South Carolina.
Lee, who defeated No. 72 Eleni Louka (6-1, 6-0) Friday, knocked off Malaika Rapolu of Texas in straight sets Saturday, 6-2, 6-3. She will take on Emma Jackson in the finals of Flight 2 Singles at 9 a.m. Sunday.
Ranked ninth in the ITA preseason rankings, the duo of Staff and Cruz earned bronze in Flight 3 Doubles. The pair defeated 38th-ranked sisters Carolyn and Anna Campana of Wake Forest, 6-3, on Friday before dropping a match to Duke duo Drummy/Jackson, 6-3. But Staff and Cruz rebounded to win 6-3 over Texas pair Rapolu/Zamarripa.
Also in doubles play, Lee and Yufei Long won a pair of matches in the consolation bracket. The duo defeated Duckworth and Molinaro of Tennessee, 6-2, and then earned a 7-5 win over South Carolina’s Narboni and Tulenko.
The team of Ross and Rompf won 7-5 over Akli/Hammer of South Carolina, and the team of Amy Stevens and Kourkina defeated South Carolina’s Couch and Mills, 6-1.
Also among the Commodore singles winners on Saturday, Holly Staff defeated Tennessee’s Esther Adeshina, 6-3, 7-6 (2), Dasha Kourkina beat Ana Cruz of South Carolina, 6-1, 6-4, and MaryAnn Rompf won 6-1, 7-6 over Georgia Tech’s Rosie Carcia Gross. All three Dores will play in the consolation finals Sunday.
When Vanderbilt returns from Greenville, the Commodores will host their annual June Stewart Invitational, Oct. 8-10, at the Currey Tennis Center.
Fans can follow Vanderbilt women’s tennis on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @VandyWTennis.
Vanderbilt Results
Round 1 – Singles
Lee def. Eleni Louka (CU) — 6-1, 6-0
Ava Hrastar (GT) def. Long — 6-4, 6-3
Carol Lee (GT) def. Staff — 6-1, 7-5
Fernanda Labrana (Texas) def. Ross — 2-6, 7-5, 6-1
Brooke Killingsworth (WF) def. Kourkina — 6-4, 7-6
Carson Tanguilig (UNC) def. Cruz — 6-1, 6-2
Samantha Buyckx (CU) def. Stevens — 6-2, 6-3
Ali Despain (CU) def. Rompf — 6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Round 1 – Doubles
Staff/Cruz def. Campana/Campana (Wake) — 6-3
Chen/Omirou (Duke) def. Rompf/Ross — 6-1
Thomas/Labrana (Texas) def. Lee/Long — 6-3
Stevens/Kourkina def. Gross/Sassoli (GT) — 6-3
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Singles Semifinals – Winners Bracket
Lee def. Malaika Rapolu (Texas) — 6-2, 6-3
Singles Semifinals – Consolation Bracket
Staff def. Esther Adeshina (Tenn) — 6-3, 7-6 (2)
Kourkina def. Ana Cruz (USC) — 6-1, 6-4
Magda Adaloglou (MSU) def. Long — 6-4, 6-2
Allie Gretkowski (USC) def. Ross — 6-4, 6-7, 6-3
Elise Mills (USC) def. Cruz — 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (5)
Rompf def. Rosie Carcia Gross (GT) — 6-1, 7-6
Doubles Semifinals – Winners Bracket
Kortikere/Cusano (Texas) def. Stevens/Kourkina — 6-1
Stevens/Kourkina def. Couch/Mills (USC) — 6-1
Drummy/Jackson (Duke) def. Staff/Cruz — 6-3
Staff/Cruz def. Rapolu/Zamarripa (Texas) — 6-3
Doubles Semifinals – Consolation
Adeshina/Kuczer (Tenn) def. Ross/Rompf — 6-3
Ross/Rompf def. Akli/ Hamner (USC) — 7-5
Lee/Long def. Duckworth/Molinaro (Tenn) — 6-2
Lee/Long def. Narboni/Tulenko (USC) — 7-5
