Cavaliers Post Two Singles Wins to Open Fall Season

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Sept. 12, 2014

CARY, N.C. – The Virginia women’s tennis team opened the 2014 fall season with two singles wins and a pair of doubles victories at the Duke Fab Four Invitational Friday (Sept. 12) in Cary, N.C.

Competing in singles for Virginia were juniors Stephanie Nauta (Galveston, Texas), Maci Epstein (Winter Park, Fla.) and Skylar Morton (Bethesda, Md.), sophomore Marie Faure (Toulouse, France) and freshman Cassie Mercer (Huntington, W.Va.).

In the blue singles flight, Faure defeated Ole Miss’ Erin Stephens 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 and Nauta topped Furman’s Blair Martin 6-3, 6-3. Epstein lost a tough 7-6(11), 6-2 decision to North Carolina’s Kate Vialle, while Florida’s Josie Kuhlman defeated Morton 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 in the white singles flight. Mercer dropped a 6-3, 6-2 decision to Alabama’s Natalia Maynetto in the black singles flight.

A pair of UVa doubles tandems combined for 2-2 record. Nauta and Epstein lost their opening match to Florida’s Belinda Woolcock and Spencer Liang 8-7(5), but blanked Furman’s Martin and Karlee Bryde 8-0 in the blue doubles flight. Mercer and Morton defeated North Carolina’s Vialle and Ashley Dai 8-7 in their opener, but lost 8-3 to Miami’s Clementina Riobueno and Monique Albuquerque in the semifinals of the white doubles flight. Faure added a 1-1 doubles record with Duke’s Rachel Kahan in the black doubles flight.

The Cavaliers are competing in singles and doubles against players from Alabama, Florida, Furman, Miami (Fla.), North Carolina, Oklahoma State, San Jose State, Ole Miss and host Duke in the three-day invitational.

Action continues Saturday at Cary Tennis Center beginning with singles at 9 a.m.