Nauta Rolls Into Singles Final at Atlantic Regional
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Updated Singles & Doubles | Tournament Homepage
Oct. 20, 2014
BLACKSBURG, Va. – Virginia junior Stephanie Nauta (Galveston, Texas) advanced to the singles final with a pair of victories on Monday (Oct. 20) at the USTA/ITA Atlantic Regional Championship at Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center in Blacksburg, Va.
No. 1 seed Nauta beat William & Mary’s Leeza Nemchinov 6-2, 7-5 in the quarterfinals and Old Dominion’s Borislava Botusharova 5-7, 6-2, 6-3 in the semifinals. Nauta will meet Virginia Tech’s Ilinca Stoica in tomorrow’s final. The winner receives an automatic berth to the USTA/ITA National Indoor Championships, held Nov. 6-9 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y.
The UVa doubles tandems of Nauta and Maci Epstein (Winter Park, Fla.) and Cassie Mercer (Huntington, W.Va.) and Skylar Morton (Bethesda, Md.) moved on to the semifinals. Nauta and Epstein defeated Temple’s Dina Karina and Monet Willis 8-0 and Mercer and Morton beat Maryland’s Kristina Hovespyn and Ekaterina Tour 8-2. Nauta and Epstein battle VCU’s Salome Kvitashvilli and Olga Barscheheuskaya in tomorrow’s semifinals, while Mercer and Morton face Virginia Tech’s Raluca Mita and Stoica.
In other quarterfinal singles action, No. 9-16 seed Morton suffered a 6-2, 6-4 loss to Stoica and Marie Faure (Toulouse, France) dropped a 6-2, 6-2 decision to Botusharova.
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.
Singles and doubles final action concludes tomorrow. Fans can follow the tournament at www.hokiesports.com/wtennis/brackets.