No. 8 Virginia Advances to ITA Kickoff Weekend Final

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. –  The No. 8 Virginia women’s tennis team (3-0) picked up a 4-1 victory against Washington State (2-1) on Friday (Jan. 27) in the opening round of ITA Kickoff Weekend matches.

Virginia advances to take on either South Carolina or Northwestern on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 3:30 p.m. in the championship match. The winner of that contest will earn an invitation to the 2023 ITA National Indoor Team Championships, being held Feb. 10-13 in Seattle, Wash.

The Cavaliers won on all three doubles courts. Natasha Subhash and Melodie Collard followed with dominant wins on courts two and six to give UVA a 3-0 lead.

Sara Ziodato and Annabelle Xu rebounded after dropping their first sets to win their seconds to force third sets.

The Cougar’s Maxine Murphy picked up a point for her team by winning a three-setter on the top court to make it 3-1.

Hibah Shaikh clinched the match with a 6-4, 6-3 victory against Fifa Kumhom on court five to send her team to the final.

RESULTS
#8 Virginia 4, Washington State 1
Singles competition

1. Maxine Murphy (WSU) def. #34 Julia Adams (VA) 2-6, 6-2, 6-3
2. #90 Natasha Subhash (VA) def. Eva Alvarez Sande (WSU) 6-0, 6-2
3. Sara Ziodato (VA) vs. Yura Nakagawa (WSU) 4-6, 6-2, 2-1, unfinished
4. #62 Annabelle Xu (VA) vs. Elyse Tse (WSU) 3-6, 6-3, 2-2, unfinished
5. #77 Hibah Shaikh (VA) def. Fifa Kumhom (WSU) 6-4, 6-3
6. #98 Melodie Collard (VA) def. Stefaniia Mikhailova (WSU) 6-1, 6-1

Doubles competition

1. Julia Adams/Melodie Collard (VA) def. Maxine Murphy/Eva Alvarez Sande (WSU) 6-4
2. Natasha Subhash/Annabelle Xu (VA) def. Fifa Kumhom/Yura Nakagawa (WSU) 6-3
3. Elaine Chervinsky/Sara Ziodato (VA) def. Elyse Tse/Hania Abouelsaad (WSU) 6-3

Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (6,2,1,5)
T-2:20 A-82 

ABOUT ITA KICKOFF WEEKEND

• The ITA Kickoff Weekend is one of the marquee events of the spring season bringing together the top 60 men’s and women’s college tennis teams for a weekend of intense competition. Hosted by 15 men’s and women’s programs from across the country, the ITA Kickoff Weekend is an early-season test for teams against programs they might not typically face.
• Each season, the ITA Kickoff Weekend field is determined by the ITA Kickoff Weekend Draft which is held in the summer months after the dual-match season. The Top 15 ranked teams in the final ITA Rankings of the season will automatically serve as hosts for both men’s and women’s teams
• In the draft, teams and coaches have the opportunity to choose where they would like to play. The picks start with the No. 16 ranked team and conclude with the No. 60 ranked team (or until all 60 spots are filled)
• With four teams playing at each host site, the winning teams from the opening round will meet in the second round to determine who advances to the 2023 ITA National Team Indoor Championships
• The winner of the Charlottesville regional will earn a spot in the 36^th Annual ITA National Team Indoor Championships, being held Feb. 10-13 in Seattle, Wash.
• The UVA men are also hosting ITA Kickoff Weekend matches and will be playing the preliminary round before the women’s matches on Saturday
• Virginia is one of six schools to be hosting both the men’s and women’s matches alongside Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio State, Stanford and Texas

SINGLES
32 Carolina Gomez Alonso (ARK) def. Julia Adams (VA) 6-7 (3), 6-1, 7-5
C Chloe Beck (Duke) def. Julia Adams (VA) 6-2, 6-2
32 Elaine Chervinsky (VA) def. Kimmi Hance (UCLA) 6-4, 6-3
16 Elaine Chervinsky (VA) def. Madison Sieg (USC), WO
QF Carol Lee (GT) def. Elaine Chervinsky (VA) 6-2, 6-2

DOUBLES
32 Chervinsky/Subhash (VA) def. Maquet/Quiterio (UNCC) 6-4, 6-1
16 Chervinsky/Subhash (VA) def. Koskel/Weil (MINN) 6-4, 6-1
QF Chervinsky/Subhash (VA) def. Brumfield/Cadar (MD) 6-4, 6-4
SF Crawley/Tanguilig (UNC) def. Chervinsky/Subhash (VA) 6-1, 6-2