SURPRISE, ARIZONA – No. 10 seed UT Tyler women's tennis will advance into their first ever NCAA Quarterfinals after taking down No. 7 seed Azusa Pacific by a score of 4-3 on Tuesday afternoon in the Round of 16.
UT Tyler will now advance to face off with No. 2 seed Grand Valley State on Wednesday night at 6 p.m. Central time, 5 p.m. Mountain time.
The Patriots started early with a big win by
Paula Castellanos and
Maria Antonio Ortega in the #2 line. They would fall behind 1-2 early, but came roaring back with four straight games to take a 5-2 lead that would eventually fall their way at 6-3.
The next match would also go the Patriots way, but this time it would be even more dramatic.
Yona Bancarel and
Natalia Gorzny matched up in the #1 line, and were put on their heels at 1-5. They would dig in, winning four straight games to even things back up at 5-5.
The Cougars #1 duo would go back in front at 5-6, but again Bancarel and Gornzy had the answer to force the tiebreaker. There, they raced out to a 4-0 lead and ever relinquished it, taking the match 7-6 (7-5) to earn the doubles point and a 1-0 lead into singles.
The back and forth battle would get rolling in singles, with the No. 7 seed Cougars taking both the #1 line and the #6 line to jump in front at 2-1.
Gorzny would stem that tide in the #2 line, getting rolling to even the match back up at 2-2. She was nearly unbothered in a 6-2 opening set, but fell behind 3-5 in set two. Just as she did in doubles, Gorzny dug in and won three straight games to move ahead 6-5 before eventually going into another tiebreaker. That tiebreaker was all Gorzny, as she took a 4-0 lead and then a 6-1 lead to coast to a 7-2 win.
Next up for the Patriots was
Carla Rodier, who was locked in a tight battle in the #5 line. She also coasted in her first set, rattling off a 6-1 win. Set two was off to a similar start at 3-1, but the Cougars would battle their way back to a 5-7 win and force a third set.
In that third set Rodier played more stout tennis, moving herself to a 3-1 lead early. That lead would expand to 5-2, and she would cap it off at 6-3 to put the Patriots back out in front at 3-2 with two matches left to play.
Azusa Pacific bounced back with a three set battle in the #4 line, setting the two teams up at 3-3 with just the #3 line to play.
Maria Antonio Ortega took the spot for the Patriots and faced off with Karola Suviste from the Cougars. The first set was a back and forth battle, with Suviste taking the early lead at 0-2 before Ortega answered to make it 2-2. The two would trade games back and forth all the way up to 5-5, where Ortega took charge to win the final two games and the first set.
Set two would see Ortega take her own early lead at 3-1, but a quick rally from Suviste made it 3-3 before the pair resumed their back and forth affair. This time however, Suviste would deliver a 6-7 (3-7) win to even the match at one set each.
With the entirety of the team match coming down to the final set of the day, Ortega took the early control behind three straight wins to make it 3-0. That lead would expand out to 5-2, and she would tack on one more game win to take the third set 6-3 and deliver the Patriots their first ever NCAA Quarterfinal appearance.
Doubles:
1. #8
Yona Bancarel/
Natalia Gorzny (UTT) def. #23 Larsson, Stina/Suviste, Karola (APU) 7-6 (7-5)
2.
Maria Antonio Ortega/
Paula Castellanos (UTT) def. Bautista, Vini/Reveles Arreola, Mar (APU) 6-3
3. Lopez, Shannele/Kaukenas, Tia (APU) vs.
Carla Rodier/
Hailey Zhang (UTT) 5-6, unfinished
Singles:
1. Larsson, Stina (APU) def. #9
Yona Bancarel (UTT) 6-3, 6-1
2. #50
Natalia Gorzny (UTT) def. Bautista, Vini (APU) 6-2, 7-6 (7-2)
3.
Maria Antonio Ortega (UTT) def. Suviste, Karola (APU) 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 6-3
4. Lopez, Shannele (APU) def.
Hailey Zhang (UTT) 6-2, 6-7 (1-7), 6-2
5.
Carla Rodier (UTT) def. Mert, Melis (APU) 6-1, 5-7, 6-3
6. Tran, Kimberly (APU) def.
Paula Castellanos (UTT) 6-4, 6-4
