ITA Women: Top Seeds Cruise In Friday’s ITA Kickoff

Six of the ITA Kickoff Regionals began today and all No.1 seeds cruised without much difficulty. Fresno State was the lone No.3 seed to earn a scalp into tomorrow’s final. UGA and UNC were the top 2 teams to play and routed Wyoming and Yale, respectively. The closest match of the weekend, ranking-wise, was No.18 Ohio State’s 4-3 thriller over No.19 Pepperdine. Tomorrow should bring some tighter matches and a few upsets. For my predictions for the entire weekend, check out my preview here.

It was a routine win for the Georgia Bulldogs, who claimed the victory over Wyoming before the No.6 match could get on court. Although Ellen Perez, who just arrived back in Athens after playing the Australian Open, was tested in her second set, UGA served only 6-1 or 6-2 sets across the board. Old Dominion dropped an incredibly tight doubles point in a tiebreaker, but took four first sets which propelled their win. ODU’s Adriana Rajkovic had the biggest upset of the day by UTR standards and Kyla Klier had a near 1-point win on the court today also. UGA will cruise in their final tomorrow against ODU

Note: Georgia’s indoor facility only has 4-courts so #5 and #6 singles don’t go on until a court becomes available. 

1. #12 Ellen Perez (UGA, 11.61 UTR) vs. Magdalena Stencel (WY, 9.60 UTR) 6-2, 6-5, unfinished

2. #22 Caroline Brinson (UGA, 11.19 UTR) def. Nastya Tokareva (WY, 9.11 UTR) 6-1, 6-2

3. #82 Silvia Garcia (UGA, 11.02 UTR) def. Dorottya Jonas (WY, 9.24 UTR) 6-1, 6-2

4. #109 Kennedy Shaffer (UGA, 11.29 UTR) def. Elisa Koonik (WY, 8.44 UTR) 6-1, 6-1

5. Miranda Talbert (WY, 7.99 UTR) vs. Mariana Gould (UGA, 10.38 UTR) 1-0 unfinished

6. Laura Patterson (UGA, UTR 9.72) vs. Sanne Hoekstra (WY, 7.30 UTR), Not Played

Order of finish: 4,3,2*

1. #14 Ellen Perez/Mariana Gould (UGA) def. Magdalena Stencel/Nastya Tokareva (WY) 6-3

2. Silvia Garcia/Caroline Brinson (UGA) vs. Miranda Talbert/Dorottya Jonas (WY) 4-3, unfinished

3. Kennedy Shaffer/Laura Patterson (UGA) def. Elisa Koonik/Sanne Hoekstra (WY) 6-2

Order of finish: 3,1*

1. Nikol Hristova (ODU, 9.93 UTR) def. Naz Karagoz (TLN, 9.43 UTR) 5-7, 7-6 (9-7), 6-0

2. Kyla Klier (TLN, 9.35 UTR) def. Nataliya Vlasova (ODU, 10.22 UTR) 6-3, 6-1

3. Ingrid Vojcinakova (ODU, 9.69 UTR) def. Ipek Birol (TLN, 9.41 UTR) 6-4, 0-6, 6-4

4. Adriana Rajkovic (ODU, 8.78 UTR) def. Elena Muller (TLN, 10.21 UTR) 6-2, 6-2 – UTR Upset

5. Marijana Novakovic (ODU, 9.26 UTR) vs. Jacqui Katz (TLN, 9.51 UTR) 6-3, 3-6, 4-1, unf

6. Ivana Vukovic (ODU, 8.93 UTR) def. Sofia Kurtz (TLN, 8.19 UTR) 6-2, 7-6 (7-2)
Doubles

1. Ipek Birol/Sade Atkinson (TLN) def. Nikol Hristova/Marijana Novakovic (ODU) 6-1

2. Nataliya Vlasova/Adriana Rajkovic (ODU) def. Kyla Klier/Sofia Kurtz (TLN) 7-5

3. Elena Muller/Naz Karagoz (TLN) def. Ivana Vukovic/Ingrid Vojcinakova (ODU) 7-6 (7-4)

Hayley Carter was the star today in Chapel Hill, dropping two games in singles and doubles and guiding UNC to a 4-0 rout over Yale. The Tar Heels were nearly flawless in doubles, which carried over into five first set wins in singles. They should continue to cruise over Tulsa, should you look at UTR ratings. Tulsa downed Marshall 4-0, with the No.1 match the only one in the Herd’s favor. The Marshall-Yale encounter will be the closest of the weekend in my opinion.

1. #6 Hayley Carter (UNC, 11.69 UTR) def. Tina Jiang (YALE, 10.19) 6-0, 6-2

2. Madeleine Hamilton (YALE, 10.18 UTR) vs. #88 Whitney Kay (UNC, 10.74 UTR) 7-6, 0-2, unf

3. Kate Vialle (UNC, 10.41 UTR) vs. Ree Ree Li (YALE, 9.45 UTR) 6-2, 6-3, unfinished

4. #68 Jessie Aney (UNC, 11.19 UTR) vs. Sherry Li (YALE, 9.36 UTR) 6-3, 2-4, unfinished

5. Marika Akkerman (UNC, 10.63 UTR) def. Courtney Amos (YALE, 9.11 UTR) 6-2, 6-0

6. #112 Chloe Ouellet-Pizer (UNC, 10.53 UTR) def. Carol Finke (YALE, 9.29 UTR) 6-2, 6-0

Order of finish: 1,5,6*

1. #2 Hayley Carter/Whitney Kay (UNC) def. Tina Jiang/Madeleine Hamilton (YALE) 6-0

2. #16 Kate Vialle/Jessie Aney (UNC) def. Ree Ree Li/Valerie Shklover (YALE) 6-1

3. Ashley Dai/Chloe Ouellet-Pizer (UNC) vs. Carol Finke/Caroline Lynch (YALE) 5-1, unf

Order of finish: 1,2*

1. Derya Turhan (Marshall, 10.07 UTR) vs. Saana Saarteinen (TUL, 10.40 UTR), 6-4, 1-2, unf

2. Ksenia Laskutova (TUL, 10.04 UTR) vs. Rachael Morales (Marshall, 9.37 UTR), 7-5, 3-2, unf

3. Rongrong Leenabanchong (TUL, 10.02 UTR) def. Maddie Silver (Marshall, 9.46 UTR), 6-2, 6-3

4. Marcelina Cichon (TUL, 10.24 UTR) def. Marija Bogicevic (Marshall, 8.52 UTR), 6-1, 6-3

5 Yelena Nemchen (TUL, 9.74 UTR) vs. Anna Pomyatinskya (Marshall, 9.85 UTR), 7-5, 1-0, unf

6. Mahitha Dadireddy (TUL, 9.63 UTR) def. Anne Gulsrud (Marshall, 7.90 UTR), 6-4, 6-1
Doubles

1. Laskutova/Kuricova (TUL) def.Turhan/Morales (Marshall), 6-2

2. Leenabanchong/Matoula (TUL) def. Pomyatinskya/Silver (Marshall), 6-2

3. Saarteinen/Dadireddy (TUL) vs. Bogicevic/Gulsrud (Marshall), 4-3, unfinished

As expected, it’s a No.1 vs. No.2 final in Charlottesville, with Virginia and Columbia scoring 7-0 routs against BYU and Maryland, respectively. The UVA Cavaliers were dominant in doubles, blanking BYU at the top two positions and leading 5-1 at No.3 when play was suspended. BYU threw all they could handle at the No.8 team in the country, but Virginia’s depth is too solid for any setbacks, capturing all matches in straight sets. Congratulations to Stephanie Nauta, who captured her 100th career singles victory (5th all-time at Virginia) when she clinched the win for UVA.

UVA plays Columbia for their berth in Madison. Columbia had a slightly difficult time against Maryland and they captured two small UTR upsets at the Nos. 3 and 5 positions. The match was more competitive than UVA/BYU with two matches splitting sets and the doubles point on the verge of going down to the wire. While Columbia lacks star power in their lineup, they have consistent depth. They’ll need plenty of luck and upsets (and the doubles point) on their side if they want any chance at a win.

Singles
1. No. 4 Danielle Collins (UVA, 12.07 UTR) def. Mayci Jones (BYU, 9.43 UTR), 6-3, 6-1

2. No. 8 Julia Elbaba (UVA, 11.80 UTR) def. Savannah Ware (BYU, 10.12 UTR), 6-2, 6-2

3. No. 32 Skylar Morton (UVA, 10.85 UTR) def. Toby Miclat (BYU, 9.65 UTR), 7-5, 6-0

4. No. 30 Stephanie Nauta (UVA, 10.93 UTR) def. Nicolette Paulsen (BYU, 9.47 UTR), 6-4, 6-1

5. Victoria Olivarez (UVA, 10.06 UTR) def. Natella Nabieva (BYU, 8.16 UTR), 6-4, 7-5

6. Meghan Kelley (UVA, 10.17 UTR) def. Taylah Beckman (BYU, 8.25 UTR), 6-2, 6-1

Order of finish: 6,3,4*,2,1,5

1. No. 19 Collins/Kelley (UVA) def. Miclat/Beckman (BYU), 6-0

2. Elbaba/Morton (UVA) def. Poulsen/Ware (BYU), 6-0

3. Nauta/Olivarez (UVA) vs. Jones/Nabieva (BYU), 5-1, unfinished
Order of finish: 2,1*

UCLA has been gifted a pretty easy Regional and routinely defeated UC Irvine today, 4-0. The top 4 of UCLA can scrape 2-3 matches against most teams, but the lower half of the lineup is alarming. Two walk-ons are filling in, but hopefully Terri Fleming will bounce in the singles lineup and can play Jada Hart should the Blue Chip signee be enrolled. The Bruins are set to face the underranked Fresno State, who upset Arkansas. I’m expecting a tight match in tomorrow’s final should Fresno take the doubles point. They can defeat UCLA in the bottom two singles if lineups stay the same. Doubles is the most crucial key to the match if they want any chance at winning.

Singles
1. #18 Catherine Harrison (UCLA, 11.52 UTR) vs. Sarah Gong (UCI, 9.54 UTR) 6-2, 5-2, unf

2. Kyle McPhillips (UCLA, 10.63 UTR) def. Mazy Watrous (UCI, 8.64 UTR) 6-1, 6-0

3. Kristin Wiley (UCLA, 9.72 UTR) def. Vivien Dvali (UCI, 8.94 UTR) 6-2, 6-2

4. Alaina Miller (UCLA, 10.67 UTR) vs. Stephanie Hazell (UCI, 8.67 UTR) 3-6, 6-1, 1-0, unf

5. Maia Magill (UCLA, 7.96 UTR) vs. Andrea Duva (UCI, 8.01 UTR) 6-0, 5-4, unf

6. Laura Luca (UCLA, 7.09 UTR) def. Cassidy Branstine (UCI, 8.07 UTR) 6-4, 6-1

Order of finish: 2,6,3*

1. Catherine Harrison/Kyle McPhillips (UCLA) def. Sarah Gong/Mazy Watrous (UCI) 6-2

2. Terri Fleming/Maia Magill (UCLA) vs. Andrea Duva/Vivien Dvali (UCI) 5-2, unfinished

3. Alaina Miller/Kristin Wiley (UCLA) def. Cassidy Branstine/Stephanie Hazell (UCI) 6-0
Order of finish: 3,1*

The Duke Blue Devils were tested by Portland in their Regional opener, but strong play from freshmen Kaitlyn McCarthy and Jessica Ho and clincher Chalena Scholl put Duke into the final matchup against Mississipi State. It’s nice to see Christina Makarova return this season after missing last year with an injury. Look for her to rack plenty of wins should she be in the No.6 position. Duke will have to clean up their mistakes as the Bulldogs are no slouch. Expect a couple of three set matches tomorrow and possibly an upset, but Duke should win easily if the right team shows up.

1. #28 Beatrice Capra (DUKE, 11.48 UTR) vs. Lucia Butkovska (POR, 10.77 UTR), 6-1, 4-5, uf
2. #29 Kaitlyn McCarthy (DUKE, 11.55 UTR) def. Maja Mladenovic (POR, 9.92 UTR) 6-3, 6-1
3. #70 Ellyse Hamlin (DUKE, 11.25 UTR) vs. Radina Dimitrova (POR, 9.17 UTR) 2-6, 6-3, 1-0, uf
4. #79 Chalena Scholl (DUKE, 10.63) def. Tatiana Grigoryan (POR, 7.96 UTR) 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
5. Jessica Ho (DUKE, 10.26 UTR) def. Jelena Lazarevic (POR, 8.90 UTR) 6-3, 7-5
6. Christina Makarova (DUKE, 9.27 UTR) vs. Saroop Dhatt (POR, 8.61 UTR) 6-3, 2-1, uf
Order of finish: 2,5,4*

Order of finish: 2,3*

1. #41 Daneika Borthwick/Yukako Noi (FSU) vs. Madison Harrison/Georgiana Patrasc (MSU) 5-2 susp.
2. Jasmine Lee/Anastasia Rentouli (MSU) def. Julia Mikulski/Lana Rush (FSU) 6-0
3. #53 Jennifer Brown/Kristina Vozniak (MSU) def. Ariana Rahmanparast/Gabriella Castaneda 6-1

There was no doubt TCU would down Houston and that the Ohio State/Pepperdine clash would go down to the wire. Houston holds a near-guarantee point with No.34 Despoina Vogasari at the No.1 slot and she outlasted South Florida transfer Olaya Garrido-Rivas in three sets. Freshman Marie Norris clinched both the singles and doubles matches for the Super Frogs, who will face a tough Ohio State squad tomorrow. The Buckeyes, the highest-ranked team at the Regional at No.18, had a brutally tough test against No. 19 Pepperdine. The Waves have all three doubles teams ranked in the Top 45, but an upset at No.1 that jumpstarted their doubles point victory. Five of the six singles matches went three sets, with Ohio State taking three of those, but the lone straight set match was the clincher. Olivia Sneed was last on court and pushed through a 7-5,6-2 win at No.6 to put the Buckeyes through. TCU Coach Lee Taylor Walker expects a bigger test tomorrow if his team wants to return to the National Team Indoor tournament. By far, this is one match tomorrow fans should keep an eye on.

Order of finish: 4,1,5,2*

2. Olaya Garrido-Rivas/Mia King (TCU) def. Mina Markovic/Maria Cardenas (UH) 6-4
3. Marie Norris/Alexis Pereira (TCU) def. Rocio Martin/Marnie Stokes (UH) 6-1
Order of finish: 3,2*