Cavaliers Dominate at USTA/ITA Atlantic Regional
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Updated Singles & Doubles Brackets | Tournament Homepage
Oct. 18, 2014
BLACKSBURG, Va. – The Virginia women’s tennis team enjoyed an undefeated Saturday (Oct. 18) at the USTA/ITA Atlantic Regional Championship at Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center in Blacksburg, Va.
Virginia went 5-0 in singles and 2-0 in doubles, advancing five players to the round of 32 in singles and both doubles tandems to the quarterfinals.
No. 1 seed Stephanie Nauta (Galveston, Texas), No. 3 seed Maci Epstein (Winter Park, Fla.), No. 4 seed Marie Faure (Toulouse, France), No. 9-16 seed Skylar Morton (Bethesda, Md.) and freshman Cassie Mercer (Huntington, W.Va.) each won its first round singles matches.
Nauta beat UMBC’s Mariami Dolashvilli 6-3, 6-2 and Epstein topped Temple’s Monet Willis 6-0, 6-2. Faure defeated Pitt’s Molly Wickman 7-5, 6-4 and Mercer beat VCU’s Salome Kvitashvilli 6-1, 3-6, 6-2. Morton added an 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-1 win over Pitt’s Lolade Ogungbesan.
In doubles, Nauta and Epstein edged Georgetown’s Victoire Saperstein and Liselot Koenen 8-7(3) and Mercer and Morton beat Pitt’s Amanda Wickman and Amber Washington 8-6. UVa junior standouts Julia Elbaba (Oyster Bay, N.Y.) and reigning NCAA singles and ITA Atlantic Region singles champion Danielle Collins (St. Petersburg, Fla.) are not competing this weekend.
Representatives from 22 other Atlantic Region schools are competing with UVa in the tournament. Joining the Cavaliers are: Virginia Tech, Maryland, William & Mary, VCU, Penn State, James Madison, Richmond, Pittsburgh, Georgetown, Liberty, Radford, Temple, UMBC, Navy, Old Dominion, George Washington, St. Joseph’s, Longwood, Duquesne, Delaware, Marshall and Norfolk State.
The winners of the singles and doubles draw will receive automatic berths to the ITA National Indoor Championships, held Nov. 6-9 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y.
Singles and doubles action continues Sunday. Fans can follow the tournament at www.hokiesports.com/wtennis/brackets.