Women’s Tennis: Virginia punches ticket to NCAA quarters with 4-1 triumph vs. Vandy

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Posted on Saturday, May. 11, 2024, 7:41 pm

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Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Photo: UVA Athletics

The Virginia women’s tennis team advanced to the quarterfinals of the  2024 NCAA Women’s Tennis Championship with a 4-1 victory against Vanderbilt on Saturday at the Virginia Tennis Facility at the Boar’s Head Resort.

Virginia (25-4) won the doubles point and took singles courts three, five and six. Junior Mélodie Collard won the clinching point for the Cavaliers.

The Cavaliers advance to the finals site, Oklahoma State’s Greenwood Tennis Center in Stillwater, Okla., where they will face Texas A&M in a quarterfinal match on Friday, May 17.

Senior Sara Ziodato and sophomore Meggie Navarro opened the match with a 6-1 victory at No. 3 doubles. Senior Hibah Shaikh and grad student Natasha Subhash clinched the point with a 7-5 victory on court two.

The Cavaliers opened singles strong, taking five first sets, including Ziodato winning a tiebreaker 7-2 on court four.

Junior Elaine Chervinsky put the Cavaliers up 2-0 with a 6-1, 6-2 victory on court five. Subhash also won in straight sets, going 6-3, 6-2 on court three to make it 3-0.

The other four courts all split sets and went to a third.

Collard was the lone Cavalier to drop her first set, falling 6-1 against Amy Stevens on court six, but then countered with a 6-1 victory in the second to force a third. She was on match point when Vanderbilt’s Celia-Belle Mohr finished off a three-set victory on the top court to give the Commodores (14-11) a point. Collard closed out her 6-4 victory to clinch the match.

This is the fourth time in program history the Cavaliers have advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals, also making it in 2014, 2016 and 2022.

FROM HEAD COACH SARA O’LEARY

“I’m just really proud of the entire team. I’m so happy for them and happy we could get this win today for our three seniors. So they’ve meant so much to the program and it’s really bittersweet knowing that this is the last time they’ll play on these courts. But for them to finish with that match and this situation, I’m just really proud of them and really happy for them. We’re really excited for this opportunity and to get to keep playing. We’ll use this time today and tomorrow to really recover and then get back to work.”

“To see Mélodie finish it with an overhead and just be so brave in that situation when the match was tight, and her match was really on the line there, I’m just proud of her for trusting in herself and finishing that way.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES

  • Virginia is the No. 5 seed in the tournament but is ranked No. 6 in the ITA rankings
  • Virginia posted a 15-0 record at home this season and has won 22 consecutive home matches since last season, going 28-1 at home over the last two seasons
  • Virginia’s 25 victories this year is a program record
  • Vanderbilt is No. 31 in the ITA team rankings. They were the No. 2 seed in the Columbus Regional, upsetting No. 14 Ohio State, and were unseeded in the tournament
  • Texas A&M, the 13 seed, defeated 4-seed North Carolina 4-1 on Friday in Chapel Hill. It was the first home loss for the Tar Heels in six years

VIRGINIA 4, VANDERBILT 1

Singles
1. #13 Celia-Belle Mohr (VU) def. #24 Hibah Shaikh (VA) 4-6, 6-1, 6-1
2. #67 Annabelle Xu (VA) vs. #74 Bridget Stammel (VU) 6-2, 3-6, 3-1, unfinished
3. Natasha Subhash (VA) def. Valeria Ray (VU) 6-3, 6-2
4. #91 Sara Ziodato (VA) vs. Anessa Lee (VU) 7-6 (2), 3-6, 1-1, unfinished
5. #125 Elaine Chervinsky (VA) def. Holly Staff (VU) 6-1, 6-2
6. Mélodie Collard (VA) def. Amy Stevens (VU) 1-6, 6-1, 6-4

Doubles
1. #8 Mélodie Collard/Elaine Chervinsky (VA) vs. #53 Celia-Belle Mohr/Holly Staff (VU) 6-6, unfinished
2. #47 Natasha Subhash/Hibah Shaikh (VA) def. Bridget Stammel/Valeria Ray (VU) 7-5
3. #88 Sara Ziodato/Meggie Navarro (VA) def. Anessa Lee/Amy Stevens (VU) 6-1
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2); Singles (5,3,1,6)