ORLANDO, Fla. - The top-seeded VCU Rams surived a thrilling 4-3 matchup with crosstown rival No. 4 Richmond, while the second-seeded Fordham Rams took down No. 3 Massachusetts, 4-0, to advance to the finals of the Atlantic 10 Women's Tennis Championship, held Sunday at the USTA National Campus in Orlando. The two Rams will meet for the second consecutive year in the finals.
VCU struck first in doubles action, finishing in just over forty minutes of play. At No. 2 doubles, the pair of Yelizaveta Karlova and Emma Valletta netted a 6-3 victory, before Victoria Smirnova and Victoria Matasova clinched the opening point with a 6-3 victory at the top flight. Richmond's Lara Bakhaya and Elizabeth Novak led VCU's Anja Draskovic and Gabriela Davidescu, 5-3, when the match was abandoned.
In singles action, the Rams and Spiders battled early on nearly every court. The Rams took the first point behind Smirnova's 7-5, 6-1 victory at the top flight to go up 2-0. The Spiders answered back with two courts of their own with Claire Le Du finishing 7-5, 6-2 on court No. 5, followed by Andrea Campodonico, 6-2, 7-5 at No. 3 singles to tie the match. Elizabeth Novak gave the Spiders the lead in the match with her 6-2, 7-5 victory at No. 4 singles, before VCU's Valletta tied it up again at No. 6 singles, 7-6, 6-3. The final match came down to Yelizaveta Karlova against Carly Cohen. Karlova prevailed, 6-4, 7-5, sending VCU back to the Championship final, where they will look to secure their ninth A-10 crown.
Fordham got on the board early, earning the match's opening point in doubles play. The Rams' top pair of Valeria Deminova and Avery Aude made quick work on their court, 6-1, before Carlota Casasampere and Rachelle Yang clinched the point with their 6-4 victory on No. 3 doubles. Court two was knotted at at 5-5 when the match was completed.
Aude continued her momentum into singles play, striking first with a quick 6-3, 6-0 victory at No. 4 singles to extend Fordham's lead to 2-0. She was followed by Valeria Deminova, who after a battle in the first set, won 6-0 in the second at the top flight. The match was clinched by the Rams on court two's Lindsay Hung, who picked up the tiebreak win in the second set to send the Rams back to the A-10 Championship final. UMass split sets on courts three and six when the match was completed.
MATCH #10
#1 VCU def. #4 RICHMOND, 4-3
SINGLES
1. Victoria Smirnova (VCU) def. Leonor Oliveir (UR) 7-5, 6-1
2. Yelizaveta Karlova (VCU) def. Carly Cohen (UR) 6-4, 7-5
3. Andrea Campodonico (UR) def. Victoria Matasova (VCU) 6-2, 7-5
4. Elizabeth Novak (UR) def. Gabriela Davidescu (VCU) 6-2, 7-5
5. Claire Le Du (UR) def. Anja Drasovic (VCU) 7-5, 6-2
6. Emma Valletta (VCU) def. Polina Shitikova (UR) 7-6(4), 6-3
Order of Finish: 1, 5, 3, 4, 6, 2
DOUBLES
1. Victoria Smirnova/Victoria Matasova (VCU) def. Andrea Campodonico/Polina Shitikova (UR) 6-2
2. Yelizaveta Karlova/Emma Valletta (VCU) def. Claire Le Du/Marta Buendia (UR) 6-3
3. Lara Bakhaya/Elizabeth Novak (UR) vs. Anja Draskovic/Gabriela Davidescu (VCU) 5-3, DNF
Order of Finish: 2, 1
MATCH #11
# 2 FORDHAM def. #3 MASSACHUSETTS, 4-0
SINGLES
1. Valeria Deminova (FOR) def. Danielle Hack (UM) 7-5, 6-0
2. Lindsay Hung (FOR) def. Melisa Senli (UM) 6-1, 7-6(7)
3. Mariya Krasakova (UM) vs. Eleni Fasoula (FOR) 6-4, 6-7(4), 2-0, DNF
4. Avery Aude (FOR) def. Anna Napadiy (UM) 6-3, 6-0
5. Thamonpan Jonglertrakul (UM) vs. Carlota Casasampere (FOR) 7-6(5), 5-6, DNF
6. Dylan Cannon (UM) vs. Lorraine Bergmann (FOR) 6-2, 3-6, 2-4, DNF
Order of Finish: 4, 1, 2
DOUBLES
1. Valeria Deminova/Avery Aude (FOR) def. Mariya Krasakova/Melisa Senli (UM) 6-1
2. Lindsay Hung/Eleni Fasoula (FOR) vs. Anna Napadiy/Danielle Hack (UM) 5-5, DNF
3. Carlota Casasampere/Rachelle Yang (FOR) def. Dylan Cannon/Thamonpan Jonglertrakul (UM) 6-4
Order of Finish: 1, 3