Virginia Wins Two Saturday, Downs Penn And ODU
Feb. 18, 2017
NORFOLK, Va. – The Virginia women’s tennis team (4-3) went on the road and picked up a pair of wins Saturday (Feb. 18), defeating Penn and Old Dominion at the Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center at Old Dominion.
The Cavaliers faced Penn (1-3) in the first match of the day, picking up a 4-3 win over the Quakers. Virginia then returned to the court early in the evening, picking up a 5-0 win over the Monarchs. It marked the first home loss of the season for Old Dominion (5-2).
Virginia won the doubles point in both matches, setting the tone for both victories. Junior Cassie Mercer (Huntington, W.V.) and freshman Rosie Johanson (Abbotsford, British Columbia) both went undefeated on the day in helping lead the Cavaliers to the pair of victories.
“It was a very exciting, full day for the team,” said Virginia head coach Mark Guilbeau. “We are so proud of them and their efforts today. Doubleheaders are challenging enough already, and both Penn and Old Dominion certainly gave us an incredible effort. The crowd tonight was amazing and it was very cool to see our team really enjoy it and play extremely well throughout.”
In the day’s first match against Penn, the Cavaliers got the doubles point with wins from the duo of Johanson and Meghan Kelley (Falmouth, Maine) on court two and a win from the pairing of Hunter Bleser (New Braunfels, Texas) and Camille Favero (Sacramento, Calif.) on court three.
Singles wins on the top three courts from Mercer, Johanson and Kelley clinched the neutral-site match over the Quakers for the Cavaliers, 4-3.
In the second match of the day, Virginia faced Old Dominion who was undefeated at home entering the match.
Virginia fought through to win the doubles point. The duo of Johanson and Kelley won first on court two. The Cavaliers then secured the doubles point, taking victory on court one with the pairing of Chloe Gullickson (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) and Mercer.
Four singles wins resulted in the final margin of victory as the Cavaliers shutout the Monarchs, with Mercer and Johanson both defeating nationally-ranked opponents on courts one and two. Gullickson and Favero then won on courts four and six to lock up the match.
Virginia will return to action on Sunday, March 5, when the Cavaliers host Virginia Tech at the Snyder Tennis Center in a noon match. All women’s tennis matches are free to the public.
Virginia 4, Penn 3
Singles
Cassie Mercer def. No. 108 Kana Daniel, 6-3, 6-3
Rosie Johanson def. Ria Vaidya, 6-4, 6-4
Meghan Kelley def. Lina Qostal, 6-4, 6-4
Ashley Zhu def. Chloe Gullickson, 6-7 (1), 7-6 (3), 1-0 (6)
Luba Vazhenina def. Hunter Bleser, 3-0 (retired)
Marta Kowalska def. Camille Favero, 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (5)
Order of Finish: 5, 3, 2, 1, 6, 4
Doubles
Gullickson/Mercer led Daniel/Vaidya, 4-2 (unfinished)
Johanson/Kelley def. Qostal/Zhu, 6-1
Bleser/Favero def. Kowalska/Vazhenina, 6-1
Order of Finish: 2, 3
Virginia 5, Old Dominion 0
Singles
Cassie Mercer def. No. 89 Borislava Botusharova, 6-1, 6-2
Rosie Johanson def. No. 57 Holly Hutchinson, 6-3, 6-2
Adriana Rajkovic vs. Meghan Kelley, 7-5, 2-6 (unfinished)
Chloe Gullickson def. Ingrid Vojcinakova, 6-0, 6-2
Natalia Vlasova vs. Hunter Bleser, 6-4 (unfinished)
Camille Favero def. Eliska Petrackova, 6-4, 6-2
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 6, 4
Doubles
Gullickson/Mercer def. Hutchinson/Vlasova, 6-4
Johanson/Kelley def. Rojkovic/Vojcinakova, 6-3
Botusharova/Novakovic def. Bleser/Favero, 6-3
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1