NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Vanderbilt women’s tennis team suffered another heartbreaker on Sunday, falling 5-2 to No. 16 Texas at the Lummis Family Tennis Center.
In a rematch from the ITA National Team Indoor Championship, Vanderbilt (11-4, 1-2 SEC) again started strong against the Longhorns. No. 2 ranked graduate Célia-Belle Mohr and Sophia Webster opened the day with a 6-3 win over Anastasia Abbagnato and Carmen Herea. It is the first victory for the Commodore duo since Feb. 13 after having five consecutive matches go unfinished. Texas (6-4, 2-1 SEC) evened things up with a win at No. 2 doubles, leaving the No. 64 ranked freshmen duo of Erin Pearce and Mia Yamakita to secure the early point. Pearce and Yamakita fended off a late push from Salma Drugdova and Mathilde Ngijol-Carré, clinching a 6-4 victory and giving Vanderbilt a 1-0 lead.
After an opening defeat at No. 2 singles, the Dores reclaimed the lead behind sophomore Trinetra Vijayakumar’s 6-3, 7-5 win versus Christasha McNeil. Both teams went back and forth at each court, resulting in a trio of three-set matches and multiple 6-6 tiebreakers. Texas finished off victories at No. 6 and No. 3 singles to push ahead 3-2 with Courts 1 and 5 remaining.
Vanderbilt took the first set at the No. 1 and No. 5 positions, but were unable to close the door on the Longhorns, who sent both matches the distance. It was a difference of a handful of points in the final moments, and ultimately Texas found its way to a win at both courts, downing the Dores 5-2. The Longhorns ended the match with a 447-394 point advantage. Vanderbilt went 0-for-4 out of the four total tiebreak games.
Vanderbilt braces for another weekend at home as defending champion and No. 1 ranked Georgia visits Music City for a Friday battle before a matchup with South Carolina on Sunday. For more information, updates and exclusive match day content, follow the Vanderbilt women’s tennis team, @VandyWTennis, on Instagram and X.
No. 16 Texas 5, No. 39 Vanderbilt 2
Doubles
1. No. 2 Mohr/Webster [Vanderbilt] def. Abbagnato/Herea [Texas] 6-3
2. Elizabeth Ionescu/McNeil [Texas] def. No. 10 Valeria Ray/Bridget Stammel [Vanderbilt] 6-3
3. No. 64 Pearce/Yamakita [Vanderbilt] def. Drugdova/Ngijol-Carré [Texas] 6-4
Singles
1. No. 3 Herea [Texas] def. No. 34 Mohr [Vanderbilt] 3-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4
2. No. 21 Abbagnato [Texas] def. No. 42 Stammel [Vanderbilt] 6-2, 6-4
3. Eszter Meri [Texas] def. No. 15 Ray [Vanderbilt] 7-6 (10), 6-2
4. Vijayakumar [Vanderbilt] def. McNeil [Texas] 6-3, 7-5
5. Ionescu [Texas] def. Pearce [Vanderbilt] 1-6, 7-5, 7-6 (0)
6. Ngijol-Carré [Texas] def. Webster [Vanderbilt] 7-6 (6), 6-1
Order of finish: Doubles (1,2,3); Singles (2,4,6,3,1,5)
