Oct. 4, 2008
CINCINNATI, Ohio, - Ayano Tanaka and Lindsay Dillon each advanced to their respective draw's semifinals to lead the Kennesaw State Women's Tennis team to an 11-6 showing Friday at the University of Cincinnati's Queen City Invitational.
Tanaka and Dillon, who went winless at the Queen City Racquet Club last season, played at an elevated level to each earn a pair of victories.
Tanaka, who has struggled to find wins in her first two tournaments, looked sharp in her 6-3, 7-5 first round win over Xavier's Jill Ducro. She fell behind early in her C singles quarterfinal match with Cincinnati's Jessica Wise, but regained her form in the second and cruised to a 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 win. She will face Eastern Kentucky's Jemma Euers at 2 p.m. on Saturday with a trip to the finals on the line.
Dillon was also on point in her first two matches, sweeping both of her opponents in straight sets. The Owls sophomore beat West Virginia's Catie Wickline in the D singles round of 16 before moving on to defeat Dayton's Sarah Smith 6-1, 7-6 in the quarters. Dillon will take on Miami's (OH) Jessica Par at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Courtney Cox was the only other Owl to earn a front draw victory in singles on Friday, outlasting the Bearcats' Anna Nelke 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 in the C flight. Cox couldn't advance to the semis after losing to Xavier's Kelsey Kinnard 6-1, 6-2 in the quarters. She will play WVU's Gabi Blaskovicova at 4 p.m. on Saturday in a consolation match.
"Today started off rough just like last year when we visited Cincinnati, but we turned things around very quickly and put together some strong results," said Kennesaw State Head Coach Brandon Padgett on his team's Friday performance. "I am looking forward to Saturday to see if we can our streak of front draw titles alive."
MacKenzie Swindall, Vera Shkundina, and Morgan Carney all lost their first round matches but advanced with wins in their respective consolation brackets. Swindall looked flat in her first round A singles match, losing 6-1, 6-1 to EKU's Svetlana Pimenova before rebounding with a 7-6, 7-5 win over Ball State's Hanna Oman in the consolation draw. She is scheduled to face Miami's Riekie Honiball at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Shkundina also lost in A singles, getting downed 6-2, 6-3 by Miami's Cara Wald. Not letting the loss effect her, the Owls standout freshman cruised past Ball State's Kylee Johnson 7-6, 6-1 in the consolation bracket to set up a 2:30 p.m. Saturday showdown with Alexandra Sitnikova of EKU.
Carney lost a close match to WVU's Veronica Cardenas in the first round of the B singles draw, falling in three sets 6-7, 6-0, 7-6. Her first round opponent in the consolation bracket withdrew because of an injury, setting the table for Carney to take on Dayton's Nikki Dzubay at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Alena Sergeychik and Agatha Palider both withdrew from the singles competition due to injuries. After playing doubles, Sergeychik attempted to play her first round match but never looked right, conceding the match to Xavier's Jeanette Fielder after falling behind 6-0, 4-0. Palider didn't compete because of a foot injury.
The Owls went 2-1 in doubles on Friday including an 8-3 mixed doubles win by Sergeychik and Cincinnati's Abby Mayo for in B doubles. Cox and Dillon paired for the Owls other win, running away with an 8-1 decision over the host's duo of Ashley Hale and Anna Nelke. They will compete against Xavier's Jill Ducro and Christie Pleiman at 9 a.m. on Saturday for a trip to the semis.
Tanaka and Shkundina are in the A flight quarterfinals after receiving a first round bye. They will play Ball State's team of Hanna Oman and Georgina Thompson at 9 a.m. on Saturday morning.
The Owls losing duo was Swindall and Carney who were paired together at the last minute because of Palider's injury. They will look to rebound from an 8-1 opening round loss to Miami's team of Rieke Honiball and Cara Wald when they square off with Dayton's Nikki Dzubay and Kelly O'Connell in a 10 a.m. Saturday showdown.
A Singles
16 - Svetlana Pimenova (EKU) def. MacKenzie Swindall 6-1, 6-1
Cons. - Swindall def. Hanna Oman (Ball State) 7-6, 7-5
16 - Cara Wald (Miami) def. Vera Shkundina 6-2, 6-3
Cons. - Shkundina def. Kylee Johnson (Ball State) 7-6, 6-1
B Singles
16 - Veronica Cardenas (West Va.) def. Morgan Carney 6-7, 6-0, 7-6
Cons. - Carney def. Georgina Thompson (Ball State) Injury withdrawal
16 - Jeanette Fielder (Xavier) def. Alena Sergeychik 6-0, 4-0 retired due to injury
C Singles
16- Ayano Tanaka def. Jill Ducro (Xavier) 6-3, 7-5
QF - Tanaka def. Jessica Wise 3-6, 6-1, 6-3
16 - Courtney Cox def. Anna Nelke (Cincinnati) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
QF - Kelsey Kinnard (Xavier) def. Cox 6-1, 6-2
D Singles
16 - Lindsay Dillon def. Catie Wickline (West Va.) 7-5, 6-3
QF - Dillon def. Jessica Parr (Miami) 6-1, 7-6
A Doubles
16 - Riekie Honiball/Cara Wald (Miami) def. Swindall/Carney 8-0
B Doubles
16 - Cox/Dillon def. Ashley Hale/Anna Nelke (Cincinnati) 8-1
16 - Sergeychik (KSU)/Abby Mayo (Cincinnati) def. Manetta Maffey/Cathy Starr (Xavier) 8-3
