NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt women’s tennis needed no heroics Friday against No. 1 Georgia, as the Commodores controlled the contest from start to finish in a 4-2 takedown of the defending champion Bulldogs at the Lummis Family Tennis Center.
“What an absolutely incredible college tennis match and signature win for our program,” head coach Aleke Tsoubanos said. “Georgia is a first class team and I have so much respect for their coaching staff and all they’ve accomplished the last few years. Tonight was such a cool moment to play under the lights at Lummis, and I give our players all the credit for the victory they earned over the top team in the nation. We’ve had some brutally close losses, both last week and last month at National Team Indoors, so to see this group stick together and come through in the biggest match they’ve played yet this spring was so special. Tonight was a huge moment for us.”
The Dores were off and rolling in doubles play, picking up wins at their No. 1 and No. 2 positions to secure the early point. No. 5 ranked graduate Célia-Belle Mohr and sophomore Sophia Webster generated their highest ranked win of the season, sinking No. 8 Deniz Dilek and Aysegul Mert 6-2. The win is the first top-10 victory for the black and gold’s top pair. The No. 16 ranked duo of junior Valeria Ray and senior Bridget Stammel followed suite with a 6-4 victory against Anastasiia Lopata and Patricija Paukstyte. It is just the third time Georgia (8-2, 3-1 SEC) has lost the doubles point all season.
“We’ve really tried to emphasize coming out stronger in doubles, and I think we did an excellent job of that today,” Tsoubanos said. “The level of play from our top two spots was fantastic; we served and returned very well, and the energy on the court was exactly what we needed. I think that performance allowed us to carry momentum over into singles for sure.”
Vanderbilt (12-4, 2-2 SEC) kept the pressure on in singles with four first set leads out of the six courts. Ray upheld the energy for the Dores, quickly moving past No. 48 Dilek 6-1, 6-4. Georgia then collected wins at No. 5 and No. 4 singles to even the score at 2-2. Despite the Bulldog response, there was no slowing down the Dores. No. 24 Mohr delivered Vandy its third point after dismantling No. 37 Lopata 7-5, 6-2. It was the 100th career singles victory for Mohr, who continues to add to an already historic career.
“It’s not every day you find yourselves in a position to take down the number one team in the country, but we also had a very special individual milestone today with Célia‘s win over Lopata,” Tsoubanos said. “She’s already the most decorated player in our program’s history, and she now joins a very short list of players that have won 100 career singles matches at Vanderbilt. I am so very proud of her.”
With two courts remaining, the Commodores’ hopes fell on the shoulders of freshman Erin Pearce. She took a back-and-forth first set 7-6 (2) over No. 61 Sofia Rojas, with the second frame playing out in nearly the same way. Rojas eventually pulled ahead 6-5, taking a lead as Georgia’s No. 6 Mert snatched an advantage at No. 2 singles over No. 42 Stammel. With the Bulldogs threatening, Pearce delivered for her team in the biggest moment of her career. The freshman Dore swept the next game to tie it up 6-6, and in the tiebreaker, Rojas had no answer. Pearce cruised to a 7-2 victory in the clutch, sealing the 4-2 win for Vanderbilt.
“I’m so proud of Erin, who today earned the clinching point,” Tsoubanos said. “She kept her composure and played an almost flawless tiebreaker to close it out. That’s the most pressure-filled situation she’s been in yet as a freshman, and she handled it so well. She’s getting better and better by the match. It was a huge growth step for our team to stay in the moment, handle our emotions incredibly well, and play committed tennis to get those four points. Even in the matches we didn’t get, we fought and kept scorelines close, and when you can look up and down six courts knowing you have chances, it boosts the morale and belief everywhere.”
It was Vanderbilt’s first win over a No. 1 ranked opponent since knocking off top-ranked North Carolina in 2018; the Dores advanced to the national championship in that season. The result marks the first victory over Georgia since that same 2018 season, a win that also came in Nashville. It is only the second time all year the Bulldogs have not held a lead at any point in a match.
“There were some important moments where we did a great job of not letting missed opportunities change the trajectory of the matches,” Tsoubanos said. “Valeria took her first set handily and saw a 3-0 deficit in the second, but was able to fight back and keep herself with striking distance. That was huge because she got off the court with a straight-set win and all of a sudden, you look up and it’s 2-0. Likewise, Célia, who had multiple set points didn’t go her way, found herself at 5-5 and stayed with it, held her serve for 6-5 and then broke to win the set. She got off to a great start in the second set and extended an early lead to ultimately close out another straight-set win and get our third point.”
“No doubt this was a huge victory for us, and we will certainly enjoy it for the night and then get ready to prepare for South Carolina on Sunday,” Tsoubanos concluded. “The support from our Vandy fanbase was amazing; our players could feel the energy and enthusiasm from the crowd all night. It was the kind of environment that makes college tennis so much fun – a big thank you to everyone that came out.”
Vanderbilt is set to host a fourth straight top-25 opponent as No. 11 South Carolina (9-3, 2-2 SEC) makes the trek to Nashville for a 1 p.m. match on Sunday. For more information, updates and exclusive match day content, follow the Vanderbilt women’s tennis team, @VandyWTennis, on Instagram and X.
No. 35 Vanderbilt 4, No. 1 Georgia 2
Doubles
1. No. 5 Mohr/Webster [Vanderbilt] def. No. 8 Dilek/Mert [Georgia] 6-2
2. No. 16 Ray/Stammel [Vanderbilt] def. Lopata/Paukstyte [Georgia] 6-4
3. Emma Dong/Anastasiia Gureva [Georgia] def. No. 88 Pearce/Mia Yamakita [Vanderbilt] 6-2
Singles
1. No. 24 Mohr [Vanderbilt] def. No. 37 Lopata [Georgia] 7-5, 6-2
2. No. 42 Stammel [Vanderbilt] vs. No. 6 Mert [Georgia] 6-2, 3-6, 4-5, unfinished
3. No. 21 Ray [Vanderbilt] def. No. 48 Dilek [Georgia] 6-1, 6-4
4. No. 36 Gureva [Georgia] def. Trinetra Vijayakumar [Vanderbilt] 6-2, 7-5
5. Dong [Georgia] def. No. 88 Yamakita [Vanderbilt] 6-3, 6-2
6. Pearce [Vanderbilt] def. No. 61 Rojas [Georgia] 7-6 (2), 7-6 (2)
Order of finish: Doubles (3,1,2); Singles (3,5,4,1,6)
