NEW YORK – The 69th-ranked Columbia women's tennis team rallied and won a tightly contested match against Princeton, 4-2, on Sunday inside the Philip and Cheryl Milstein Family Tennis Center.
Princeton took the early lead, posting wins in the two and three doubles matches, allowing the Tigers to secure a pivotal doubles point.
Gayathri Krishnan and
Sophia Strugnell secured the lone doubles win for the Lions in the one seed, defeating Princeton's Eva Elbaz and Maren Urata, 6-1.
Columbia battled back, securing four of the first five singles wins in the six, one, five, and three seeds. Strugnell got the Lions on the board, posting a 6-3, 6-4 win in the No. 6 spot over Tsehay Driscoll. After falling behind 2-1 in the team score, Columbia would rattle off three straight singles victories to close out the match.
Krishnan and
Emily Baek earned the next two wins, with
Sophia Wang clinching the overall victory in walkoff fashion. Krishnan defeated Alice Ferlito, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 in the No. 1 singles. Baek bested Maren Urata in the No. 5 seed, winning 6-3, 1-6, 6-4. Wang posted a 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 victory over Eva Elbaz in the No. 3 spot.
Columbia improves to 12-8 overall this season and 7-2 at home. The Lions will look to continue their momentum at home in a conference clash against the visiting Harvard Crimson on Saturday, April 19.
RESULTS
Princeton 2, Columbia 4
Singles
1.
Gayathri Krishnan (COL) def. Alice Ferlito (PRI) 6-3, 3-6, 6-1
2. Bella Chhiv (PRI) def.
Fatima Keita (COL) 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)
3.
Sophia Wang (COL) def. Eva Elbaz (PRI) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
4.
Winta Tewolde (COL) vs. Anna Nguyen (PRI) 4-6, 6-2, 3-4 (unfinished)
5.
Emily Baek (COL) def. Maren Urata (PRI) 6-3, 1-6, 6-4
6.
Sophia Strugnell (COL) def. Tsehay Driscoll (PRI) 6-3, 6-4
Doubles
1.
Gayathri Krishnan/
Sophia Strugnell (COL) def. Eva Elbaz/Maren Urata (PRI) 6-1
2. Pearlie Zhang/Bella Chhiv (PRI) def.
Fatima Keita/
Winta Tewolde (COL) 6-4
3. Tsehay Driscoll/Alice Ferlito (PRI) def.
Emily Baek/
Sophia Wang (COL) 7-5
Order of finish: Doubles (1, 2, 3); Singles (6, 2, 1, 5, 3, 4 unfinished)
UP NEXT
Columbia returns to action on Saturday, April 19 at home against Harvard. First serve against the Crimson is set for 1 p.m.
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