MIAMI — The Vanderbilt women’s tennis team opened its 2022 season at the Miami Spring Invite Saturday going 5-3 in singles competition while posting a 1-2 mark in doubles.
Against the Hurricanes
- The Commodores faced Miami in six singles matches going 3-3 on Day 1.
- Anna Ross defeated her opponent, No. 76 Isabella Pfenning, in straight sets (6-4, 6-3).
- Ranked 112th nationally, Anessa Lee also took down her Hurricanes opponent, No. 104 Daevenia Achong, with a pair of set wins, 6-4 and 6-3.
- Marcella Cruz, who sits 96th in the nation in the preseason ITA poll, beat Diana Khoden in two sets taking 6-4 and 6-1 wins in her first day on the court.
- Yufei Long, Dasha Kourkina and MaryAnn Rompf also competed, with Kourkina and Rompf falling in close three-set outings.
Against the Wolfpack
- In a thrilling three-set match, Amy Stevens defeated North Carolina State’s Amelia Rajecki. After dropping the first set, 3-6, the freshman went on to win her next two, 6-4 and 6-2, to claim victory.
Seeing Double
- The Dores had three doubles teams compete on Day 1 of the Invite, taking on NC State in three close contests.
- The duo of Long and Rompf defeated Sara Nayar and Priska Nugroho of the Wolfpack, 6-3.
- The Dores dropped their other two on the court with a pair of hard fought 6-4 battles.
What They’re Saying
“Today was exactly what we were hoping to see out of this team. We competed really hard. Even when we didn’t get off to great starts on several courts, we were able to fight back into matches and pulled out several of them.
“Anna and Anessa picked up impressive singles wins against some tough competitors in Pfennig and Achong playing smart, disciplined tennis. Amy also won a hard fought three set match against Rajecki of NC State and I am proud of the way she made adjustments and executed her game plan to finish and get the win.
“We lost a couple of three-set matches but ultimately we had chances and I’m excited to see the Dores build on a very solid opening day here in Miami.” — Head coach Aleke Tsoubanos
Up Next
The Dores look to build upon their Day 1 successes in the final two days of competition at the Miami Spring Invite (Jan. 16-17). Tomorrow’s session will begin at 8 a.m. ET. They return home to open their home slate next weekend with first serve against Middle Tennessee scheduled for 11 a.m. on Friday.
