Virginia Women's Tennis Edges Maryland 4-3

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CHARLOTTESVILLE – The seventh-ranked Virginia women’s tennis team returned to action for the first time in 15 days, downing No. 69 Maryland 4-3 on Saturday at the Snyder Tennis Center. The Cavaliers (11-2, 3-0 ACC) won their fifth consecutive match, while the Terrapins fell to 6-7 overall, 0-3 in the conference.

Maryland took the early lead in the match by winning the doubles point. Erin Vierra (Norwell, Mass.) and Hana Tomljanovic (Boca Raton. Fla.) topped Cristina Stancu and Vroni Van Berlo 8-4 at No. 2, but the Terrapins won 8-6 at the other two positions. Mikele Irazusta and Jordan Hansbrough defeated Lindsey Hardenbergh (Fairfax Station, Va.) and Molly O’Koniewski (Hilton Head Island, S.C.) at No. 3, while Ana Belzunce and Welma Luus downed Emily Fraser (Rye, N.Y.) and Li Xi (Kunming, China) at No. 1.

In singles, Virginia started strong and won five of the six first sets. Caryssa Peretz (Cherry Hill, N.J.) tied the match as she cruised to a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 6 over Hansbrough. Stancu gave the Terps the lead again, 2-1, with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Fraser at the top spot. A pair of 6-3, 7-6 wins at No. 3 and No. 4 by Xi and Tomljanovic, over Van Berlo and Luus respectively, gave the Cavaliers a 3-2 lead. Hardenbergh sealed the Virginia win with her 6-3, 6-3 victory over Belzunce at No. 2. Irazusta concluded the match with a three-set win at No. 5 over Vierra to make the final score 4-3.

Virginia will continue its five-match homestand on Sunday as it hosts William & Mary. Match time at the Snyder Tennis Center is scheduled for noon.

#7 VIRGINIA 4, #69 MARYLAND 3

Doubles:
1. #20 Belzunce/Luus (Md) def. #16 Fraser/Xi (UVa) 8-6
2. Vierra/Tomljanovic (UVa) def. Stancu/Van Berlo (Md) 8-4
3. Irazusta/Hansbrough (Md) def. Hardenbergh/O’Koniewski (UVa) 8-6

Singles:
1. #41 Cristina Stancu (Md) def. #15 Emily Fraser (UVa) 6-1, 6-1
2. #42 Lindsey Hardenbergh (UVa) def. Ana Belzunce (Md) 6-3, 6-3
3. #90 Li Xi (UVa) def. Vroni Van Berlo (Md) 6-3, 7-6
4. Hana Tomljanovic (UVa) def. Welma Luus (Md) 6-3, 7-6
5. Mikele Irazusta (Md) def. Erin Vierra (UVa) 0-6, 6-1, 6-4
6. Caryssa Peretz (UVa) def. Jordan Hansbrough (Md) 6-2, 6-0

Order of Finish:
Doubles: 2,3,1
Singles: 6,1,3,4,2,5