Pitt
Bulldog Invitational
Panthers Down Yale at Bulldog Invitational
10/10/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
NEW HAVEN, Conn. - The Pitt tennis team bounced back today after a tough first day at the Bulldog Invitational, as the Panthers only suffered one loss in doubles and two in singles Friday afternoon.
"I am really proud of the girls," head coach Alex Santos said. "Their energy, aggressiveness, and fight was tremendous. We came out of the gates very strong in doubles, taking chances, improving our tennis, and keeping the foot on the gas pedal. That intensity continued into singles and ultimately we played complete tennis top to bottom. After not having the best day on the court yesterday we showed great resilience and confidence today."
The Panthers started the morning off with two doubles victories after junior Lolade Ogungbesan and freshman Carina Ma took down Madeleine Hamilton and Ree Ree Li, 8-4. That win was followed by junior Audrey Ann Blakely and freshman Gabriela Rezende securing an 8-3 victory over Yale's Tina Jiang and Valerie Shklover. Rounding out the doubles wins were the duo of senior Amber Washington and Clara Lucas who defeated Caroline Lynch and Caroline Amos, 8-4.
Pitt carried its momentum from doubles into singles, as five Panthers notched wins on the day. Ma continued her strong singles play today as she defeated her Yale opponent Valerie Shklover, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, improving to 5-5 in her collegiate fall debut.
Ogungbesan also had a strong showing in singles as she downed Ree Ree Li, 6-2, 6-1. Rezende battled past Yale's Sherry Li to a 7-6 (6), 6-3, victory.
Rounding out the singles wins was sophomore Callie Frey who defeated Carol Finke, 6-4, 7-6 (5), and freshman Natsumi Okamoto as she came out with a 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 win.
Pitt will end its weekend at the Bulldog Invitational with Harvard on Sunday starting at 9 a.m.
Ogungbesan/Ma (Pitt) def. Hamilton/R. Li (Yale), 8-4
Blakely/Rezende (Pitt) def. Jiang/Shklover (Yale), 8-3
SINGLES
Jiane (Yale) def. Blakely (Pitt), 6-1, 7-5
Ogungbesan (Pitt) def. R. Li (Yale), 6-2, 6-1
Rezende (Pitt) def. S. Li (Yale), 7-6 (6), 6-3
Frey (Pitt) def. Finke (Yale), 6-4, 7-6 (5)
Ma (Pitt) def. Shklover (Yale), 6-1, 3-6, 6-3
Okamoto (Pitt) def. Zordani (Yale), 3-6, 7-5, 7-5
Lynch (Yale) def. Lucas (Pitt), 6-2, 6-7
Players Mentioned
