College of Charleston 6, Winthrop 1
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - The No. 63-ranked College of Charleston women's tennis team got off to a great start to its spring season via a decisive 6-1 victory over the five-time and defending Big South champion Winthrop Eagles on Saturday afternoon at the CofC Tennis Center at Patriots Point.
Sophomore Samantha Maddox stepped up big as she clinched the fourth and winning point of the match for the Cougars (1-0) with a comeback 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 victory over Winthrop's Caitland Cridland in the No. 5 singles slot.
Senior Christin Newman won her first match against a nationally-ranked opponent and also overcame a shoulder injury in taking down No. 95-ranked Yasmine Alkema in a thrilling 6-7, 7-6, 10-5 victory in No. 1 singles.
Junior Kelly Kambourelis chipped in with a win in her match against Andressa Garcia of Winthrop 6-4, 6-3 in No. 2 singles, while freshman Brooke McAmis was victorious with a score of 6-2, 6-4 over Alice Garcia of the Eagles in the No.3 spot.
Sophomore Grace Baker added to the team score with a close-fought 7-5, 7-6 win over Ekin Gunaysu of Winthrop in No. 6 singles.
"It was a very hard-fought win. It was a lot closer than the overall score of 6-1," CofC Director of Tennis Angelo Anastopoulo said. "We showed a lot of character by winning against a very talented Winthrop team that I'm sure is going to be a front-runner to win the Big South again this year. I'm also very proud of Christin Newman picking up a very good win over Yasmine Alkema who's currently ranked 95th in the country. That was an awesome way for Christin to start to her senior season."
In doubles play, the Cougars got off to a slow start when Winthrop's Yasmine Alkema and Andressa Garcia won over freshman Katherine Schofield and senior Irene Viana, 8-2. However, CofC gained new life as the duo of sophomore Jenny Falcone and Kelly Kambourelis pulled off an 8-6 victory No. 2 doubles. Finally, in No. 3 doubles, the Greensboro, N.C. duo of senior Christin Newman and freshman Brooke McAmis capped off the come-from-behind win and captured the doubles point by a score of 8-6 over Winthrop's Ekin Gunaysu and Caitlin Cridland.
The Cougars will next be in action on Saturday, Jan. 26 at 2 p.m. when they take on Wyoming in Durham, N.C. in round one of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend.
East Carolina 4, Appalachian State 3
GREENVILLE, N.C. - Appalachian State women's tennis came up just short at the East Carolina Tennis Complex on Saturday, falling in a 3-4 loss to the Pirates.
The Mountaineer pair of Jennifer Ansari and Claire Cox fell 8-6 in the No. 2 double match to Pirate senior tandem Danielle Terpko and Yillian Zhang, and provided ECU the opening point to later win the match.
Mackenzie LaSure and Ellie Linsell were unable to hang on in the No 1 slot, slipping in a 8-3 decision to ECU's Nicole LaDuca and neena Wanko.
In singles play, the Pirates managed to snag victories at the No. 2, No. 4 and No. 5 positions when Ansari lost in a 6-0, 6-1 to Zhang, and Brianna Armellino was snapped in a 6-0, 6-0 against Melis Tanik. Gabby Gabriel posted a tough effort, but also came up short in a 6-3, 6-4 to Terpko .
The Mountaineers did capture three matches, with wins from Linsell's 6-3, 7-5 over Wanko at No. 1, along with Cox, who outlasted LaDuca (6-3, 6-2) at No. 3 and Jessica Thaggard, who defeated Dana Gray (7-6, 6-1) at No. 6.
The Mountaineers return to action on Jan. 26 when they travel to White Sulphur Springs, W. Va. for three days of competition, beginning with George Mason on the 26th at 3 p.m., followed by James Madison on the 27th at 9 a.m., and concluding with Liberty at 3 p.m.