University of Minnesota Athletics
Players Mentioned
ITA Central Regional Day 2
10/22/2021 9:00:00 PM | Tennis
Rachel Hanford and Emilee Duong advance to the last 32 of the ITA Central Regional; 1 pair moves to the final 16 of doubles play.
Day 2 in Iowa City had Gophers participating in a trio of sectors. All doubles pairs advanced to the round of 32 yesterday, while 7 qualified into the singles round of 128. Of the 7 qualifying players, 3 received byes directly into the round of 64.
The day started with a quartet of Gophers pairings playing in the round of 32. Dalila Said and Emilee Duong competed against the duo of Lagarde/Smagina (Kansas), winning a close match 8-6. Maria Rizzolo and Vasia Karvouni took on the pairing of Kong/Stamet (Wichita State), falling 4-8. Following those results, Anfisa Danilchenko and Lucy Lu squared off against Iowa State's Hsieh and Naklo, losing a heartbreaker 7-8 (4). In the last game of the round of 32 matches, Rachel Hanford and Ekin Ercetin faced Alloyarova/Ukita of Kansas State, fighting hard before eventually losing 5-8. The Gophers send 1 pair to the final 16.
Moving into singles matches, 4 players played in the main draw round of 128. Dalila Said opposed Lenka Stara, edging her opponent in a 3 set match. Maria Rizzolo faced South Dakota's Sonia Skobkareva, winning a 3 set battle. Vasia Karvouni took on another Wichita State opponent, this time defeating Jessie Zheng in straight sets. Anfisa Danilchenko closed out the morning with a win over Tulsa's Leonor Oliviera. Minnesota finished 4-0 in the round of 128, advancing 7 individuals further.
In the round of 64 Dalila Said looked to build on a fantastic tournament, matching up against a familiar foe from Kansas. After winning the first set, she fell just short, eventually losing in the third set. Emilee Duong and Rachel Hanford opened their singles play with convincing wins, each doing so in straight sets. Ekin Ercetin was edged out by rival Iowa, narrowly falling in 2 close sets. Vasia Karvouni took Indianna Spink to a third set but was unable to advance. Maria Rizzolo and Anfisa Danilchenko's strong runs came to a close via defeat to Kansas opponents.
Competing in the consolation matches were Lucy Lu, who opposed Berta Girbau (South Dakota) and Zeyneb Sarioglan, who opposed Nejla Zukic. Each won convincingly, taking straight sets en route to victory. Ekin Ercetin wrapped up the day, defeating Chunxi Xin (Central Arkansas).
Day 3
Both singles and doubles action will continue tomorrow. The pairing of Said/Duong will play in the final 16, while Duong and Hanford will compete in the last 32 of singles play. Updates will be posted throughout the day on Twitter. Live streams of gameplay will enable home viewing.
Results
Singles Play
Dalila Said defeats Lenka Stara (Arkansas) 6-0, 6-7, 6-4
Maria Rizzolo defeats Sonia Skobkareva (South Dakota) 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
Vasia Karvouni defeats Jessie Zheng (Wichita State) 6-0, 6-1
Anfisa Danilchenko defeats Leonor Oliviera (Tulsa) 7-6, 6-1
Emilee Duong defeats Florentine Dekkers (Kansas State) 6-3, 6-4
Rachel Hanford defeats Ines Stephani (Drake) 6-4, 6-1
Ekin Ercetin loss to Barbora Pokorna (Iowa) 5-7, 4-6
Vasia Karvouni loss to Indianna Spink (Arkansas) 6-4, 2-6, 2-6
Dalila Said loss to Tiffany Lagarde (Kansas) 6-4, 3-6, 1-6
Maria Rizzolo loss to Malkia Ngounoue (Kansas) 2-6, 0-6
Anfisa Danilchenko loss to Maria Titova (Kansas) 2-6, 3-6
Ekin Ercetin defeats Chunxi Xin (Central Arkansas) 2-6, 6-4 [10-5]
Lucy Lu defeats Berta Girbau (South Dakota) 6-1, 6-3
Zeyneb Sarioglan defeats Nejla Zukic (Arkansas State) 6-1, 6-0
Doubles Play
Dalila Said/Emilee Duong defeat Lagarde/Smagina (Kansas) 8-6
Maria Rizzolo/Vasia Karvouni loss to Kong/Stamet (Wichita State) 4-8
Anfisa Danilchenko/Lucy Lu loss to Hsieh/Naklo (Iowa State) 7-8(4)
Rachel Hanford/Ekin Ercetin loss to Alloyarova/Ukita (Kansas State) 5-8