Friday, January 25
New York, N.Y./Dick Savitt Tennis Center
5:00 PM
Columbia
7
vs
0
Rhode Island
Photo by: Columbia University Athletics
Women's Tennis Shuts Out Rhode Island 7-0
1/25/2019 9:53:00 PM | Women's Tennis
Featuring a singles lineup of three first-years, two sophomores and a junior, Lions get off to fast start and blank Rams 7-0 for second straight season.
NEW YORK—Led by a quick start in doubles and a dominating singles performance, Columbia Women's Tennis got off to a fast start and never looked back in defeating Rhode Island 7-0 Friday evening at Dick Savitt Tennis Center. The dual match represented Columbia's spring season home opener.
With the victory, Columbia improves to 1-1 on the young season, while Rhode Island drops to 2-3 in dual matches this season.
"Today's performance was a great testament to the depth of our team," Head Coach Ilene Weintraub said. "We had a couple players out from our lineup but we were still able to win 7-0 and it shows that at any given moment any one of our players can step up and get the job done. We had three first-years in the lineup. Today, I wanted to get our younger players some experience and it was exciting to see them step up."
Columbia jumped on top 1-0 as it dominated doubles play. Sophomore Jennifer Kerr and senior Sarah Hu gave the Lions their first doubles win at No. 2 as the duo won a 6-1 decision over Rhode Island's Tiara Higuchi and Ariel Haber. Columbia first-years Melissa Sakar and Yekaterina Alferova followed with a 6-3 victory over Rhode Island's Paulina Loredo and Sydney Chratian at No. 3 doubles.
Featuring a singles lineup that included three first-years, two sophomores and a junior, the Lions took control early as they claimed all six of the first sets. Sakar was the first to win as she ran away with a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 3 singles over Rhode Island's Ariel Haber. Kerr followed with a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 2 singles over Rhode Island's Tiara Higuchi. Alferova clinched Columbia's team win with a convincing 6-3, 6-0 victory at No. 5 singles over Rhode Island's Paulina Loredo.
Junior Renee Ren claimed a 7-5, 6-0 win at No. 6 singles against the Rams' Sydney Chratian. Ren battled back with five straight points after trailing 5-2 in the first set. First-year Akanksha Bhan rallied for a hard-fought 6-4, 6-4 win at No. 1 singles over the Rams' Erin Chratian. Bhan's game-winner came on a nifty shot past Chratian's right side. With the entire crowd watching, sophomore Paulina Ferrari rallied from a one-point deficit in the second set to register a 6-0, 7-6 (7-3) win at No. 4 singles against Rhode Island's Halah Davis. Ferrari held off Davis in the tiebreaker 7-3.
Sophomore Christie Wan and senior Andrea Kevakian did not see action in the match. The Lions defeated the Rams 7-0 for the second consecutive season.
Weintraub was pleased with the performance of several of her players.
"Paulina did a great job of closing out the match in a tough situation," Weintraub said. "Her opponent was tricky and kept mixing up the pace of the ball. Paulina did a great job of outstrategizing her in the end and she stepped up and served the ball well to finish off the win. Renee is a fighter. She doesn't go away and she works very hard. It was great to see Renee battle back from some adversity. Akanksha got through what was a tough match against an athletic opponent. She was the more mentally tough player on the court today and when it came down to close points, Akanksha was able to convert those points."
Following the match, the Lions celebrated Weintraub's birthday with a cake.
Columbia is back in action on Saturday, Feb. 2 when it hosts FIU. First-serve is at 1 p.m.
With the victory, Columbia improves to 1-1 on the young season, while Rhode Island drops to 2-3 in dual matches this season.
"Today's performance was a great testament to the depth of our team," Head Coach Ilene Weintraub said. "We had a couple players out from our lineup but we were still able to win 7-0 and it shows that at any given moment any one of our players can step up and get the job done. We had three first-years in the lineup. Today, I wanted to get our younger players some experience and it was exciting to see them step up."
Columbia jumped on top 1-0 as it dominated doubles play. Sophomore Jennifer Kerr and senior Sarah Hu gave the Lions their first doubles win at No. 2 as the duo won a 6-1 decision over Rhode Island's Tiara Higuchi and Ariel Haber. Columbia first-years Melissa Sakar and Yekaterina Alferova followed with a 6-3 victory over Rhode Island's Paulina Loredo and Sydney Chratian at No. 3 doubles.
Featuring a singles lineup that included three first-years, two sophomores and a junior, the Lions took control early as they claimed all six of the first sets. Sakar was the first to win as she ran away with a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 3 singles over Rhode Island's Ariel Haber. Kerr followed with a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 2 singles over Rhode Island's Tiara Higuchi. Alferova clinched Columbia's team win with a convincing 6-3, 6-0 victory at No. 5 singles over Rhode Island's Paulina Loredo.
Junior Renee Ren claimed a 7-5, 6-0 win at No. 6 singles against the Rams' Sydney Chratian. Ren battled back with five straight points after trailing 5-2 in the first set. First-year Akanksha Bhan rallied for a hard-fought 6-4, 6-4 win at No. 1 singles over the Rams' Erin Chratian. Bhan's game-winner came on a nifty shot past Chratian's right side. With the entire crowd watching, sophomore Paulina Ferrari rallied from a one-point deficit in the second set to register a 6-0, 7-6 (7-3) win at No. 4 singles against Rhode Island's Halah Davis. Ferrari held off Davis in the tiebreaker 7-3.
Sophomore Christie Wan and senior Andrea Kevakian did not see action in the match. The Lions defeated the Rams 7-0 for the second consecutive season.
Weintraub was pleased with the performance of several of her players.
"Paulina did a great job of closing out the match in a tough situation," Weintraub said. "Her opponent was tricky and kept mixing up the pace of the ball. Paulina did a great job of outstrategizing her in the end and she stepped up and served the ball well to finish off the win. Renee is a fighter. She doesn't go away and she works very hard. It was great to see Renee battle back from some adversity. Akanksha got through what was a tough match against an athletic opponent. She was the more mentally tough player on the court today and when it came down to close points, Akanksha was able to convert those points."
Following the match, the Lions celebrated Weintraub's birthday with a cake.
Columbia is back in action on Saturday, Feb. 2 when it hosts FIU. First-serve is at 1 p.m.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
Columbia Classics Shorts - Women's Tennis 2013 Ivy League Championship
Monday, April 12
