ORLANDO, Fla. — With the opening day of singles play complete, Vanderbilt women’s tennis is still dancing in the NCAA Championships after two wins on Tuesday at the USTA National Campus.
No. 45 ranked junior Valeria Ray matched up against No. 11 Teah Chavez of Ohio State on Court 1 to start the day. Chavez entered Tuesday at 4-1 with each match coming against ranked opponents. The Buckeye’s only loss came on Sept. 24 to No. 6 Valerie Glozman of Stanford, the No. 1 overall singles seed at the NCAA Championships. Riding the momentum of a strong fall season, Chavez took control early with a 3-2 lead in the first set. But from there, it was all black and gold. Ray rattled off three straight games ahead of claiming the opening set 6-4. The Dore continued in the second set with a dominant attack that forced multiple errors from Chavez. And after moving ahead 4-1, Ray finished it off 6-3 to secure the match win. The result is the highest ranked singles victory of Ray’s career.
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Adjacent to Ray on Court 2 was No. 27 senior Bridget Stammel facing North Carolina’s No. 3 ranked Reese Brantmeier. Brantmeier immediately pulled away in the first set 6-1. With her back against the wall, Stammel responded, generating a 6-4 set victory in the second to force a winner-take-all battle for the match. The Dore extended the momentum into the third set, ultimately moving ahead 5-2. However, Brantmeier was not yet finished en route to evening the set score at 5-5. And with the match on the line, the comeback effort from Brantmeier was too much to overcome, as Stammel fell just short 7-5 in the third set.
Freshman Mia Yamakita rounded out the day for Vanderbilt versus No. 120 Darya Schwartzman of Rice. The last match of the day for the Dores was also the quickest, as Yamakita overcame an early 2-0 deficit in the opening set to go on and win 6-2, 6-3. Yamakita is now 7-1, marking the best start for a freshman since senior Sonya Macavei began her freshman season 11-1. And with a 3-0 record in ranked matchups, she is the first since Stammel in 2022 to open their debut season 3-0 against ranked opponents.
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Ray again gets the ball rolling for the black and gold tomorrow, taking on Ole Miss’ No. 67 Emily Welker at 9 a.m. in the singles round of 32. The matchup is a familiar one for Ray, who will look to avenge a 6-2, 6-4 loss to Welker just 10 days ago at the ITA Sectional Championships. Yamakita will follow against No. 103 Kyoka Kubo from Kansas at 12:30 p.m. Doubles play begins tomorrow as well, marking the return of No. 12 ranked and No. 4 seeded graduate Célia-Belle Mohr and Sophia Webster. The pair will face Cal’s No. 13 Greta Greco and Mao Mushika at 4 p.m.
The NCAA Singles & Doubles Championships tournament page is available online with live stats available here. Each match will be streamed on ESPN+, and main coverage will be provided by Cracked Racquets.
For more information, updates and exclusive content, follow the Vanderbilt women’s tennis team, @VandyWTennis, on Instagram and X.
