College of Charleston
UMass
Cougars Falter 4-3 to UMass, Bounce Back 7-0 Over SSU
3/16/2016 1:24:00 AM | Women's Tennis
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – The College of Charleston women's tennis team (12-5) got mixed results from its Tuesday double-header, narrowly falling to the UMass Minutewomen 4-3 before bouncing back to shut out the Savannah State Lady Tigers 7-0.
The match with UMass was an incredibly close affair from start to finish. The Cougars won the top-flight doubles matchup 6-2, but dropped the third flight moments later by the same score. That set up a decisive second flight between Liza Fieldsend and Helena Nyikos of the Cougars and Ruth Crawford and Anna Woosley of the Minutewomen. The contest was tied 4-4, but UMass rallied to win the flight 7-5 and narrowly capture the doubles point.
If doubles play was close, singles play was even tighter. Outside of Helena Nyikos' 6-1, 6-2 win over Carol Benito in the fifth flight, every other matchup required three sets to decide. UMass regained the lead when Crawford pulled off a 6-4, 0-6, 6-3 win over Schofield, but Brooke McAmis struck back moments later with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 win in the third flight over Arielle Griffin, bringing the match to 2-2.
The Cougars briefly took the lead when Argyriou knocked off Woosley in the fourth flight 6-1, 4-6, 6-2. Yet the Minutewomen wouldn't go away, as Ana Yrazusta prevailed over Liza Fieldsend in the top flight by a margin of 6-4, 2-6, 6-4.
With the matchup locked up at 3-3, the sixth flight between Sarah Jane Jones and Laura Moreno became the deciding bout. As Fieldsend went down, Jones held a 4-3 edge in the third set. Yet shortly thereafter, the sophomore began to cramp up, opening the door for Moreno to coast to a 2-6, 6-1, 6-4 win, giving UMass the 4-3 win.
“UMass came here and beat us in three out of five three-set matches,” Director of Tennis Angelo Anastopoulo said. “For an indoor team to out in 84 degree temperature and do that on our home court…we should do better. It was a very disappointing loss, but all credit to UMass for overcoming the challenging conditions. Coach Dixon did a great job keeping her team motivated, she just out-coached me.”
The Cougars went on to bounce back quite nicely against Savannah State. The Lady Tigers entered the day 0-14 on the year, and quickly proved to be no match for the College. CofC snapped up all three doubles matches 6-0, and went on to take all singles matches in two sets each. The freshmen in particular played impressively, as Diana Colen and Sarah Zschunke both earned 6-0, 6-0 wins over Jennyfer Vivas and Tiffany Williams respectively.
The Cougars will have a day off before tackling a tough test on Thursday at 1 p.m., when they host the No. 23 Tulsa Golden Hurricane (14-2).
UMass 4, CofC 3
SINGLES
Ana Yrazusta def. Liza Fieldsend – 6-4, 2-6, 6-4
Ruth Crawford def. Katherine Schofield – 6-4, 0-6, 6-3
Brooke McAmis def. Arielle Griffin – 6-2, 3-6, 6-1
Mara Argyriou def. Anna Woosley – 6-1, 4-6, 6-2
Helena Nyikos def. Carol Benito – 6-1, 6-2
Laura Moreno def. Sarah Jane Jones – 2-6, 6-1, 6-4
Order of Finish: 5, 2, 3, 4, 1, 6
DOUBLES
Argyriou/Schofield def. Yrazusta/Benito – 6-2
Crawford/Woosley def. Fieldsend/Nyikos – 7-5
Griffin/Moreno def. Jones/Zschunke – 6-2
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2
CofC 7, Savannah State 0
SINGLES
Liza Fieldsend def. Sandy Lochu – 6-2, 6-0
Katherine Schofield def. Elizabeth Geronimo – 6-4, 6-3
Mara Argyriou def. Rachida Kateb – 6-0, 6-1
Helena Nyikos def. Bria Burrow – 6-1, 6-0
Diana Colen def. Jennyfer Vivas – 6-0, 6-0
Sarah Zschunke def. Tiffany Williams – 6-0, 6-0
Order of Finish: 6, 3, 5, 4, 1, 2
DOUBLES
Argyriou/Schofield def. Lochu/Geronimo – 6-0
Nyikos/Zschunke def. Kateb/Vivas – 6-0
McAmis/Colen def. Burrow/Williams – 6-0
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3
Players Mentioned
