The NAIA's No. 1-ranked Georgia Gwinnett College women's tennis team recorded a convincing 6-1 home victory against NCAA Division I University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Thursday afternoon at the GGC Tennis Facility.
The Grizzlies (13-0) have now collected dual match victories this spring against teams from four different collegiate ranks: NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA. Thursday's match marked GGC's first match up against a Division I opponent since a 6-1 win against nearby Georgia State University during the 2021 season.
The No. 3 doubles team of juniors
Justine Lespes and
Carol Mora, ranked No. 13 nationally in the NAIA, clinched the doubles point with a 6-2 triumph. That came after the two teams split matches on the No. 1 and No. 2 courts. Senior
Angel Carney and sophomore
Versace Gatti won the first doubles match for the hosts with a 6-2 victory on the No. 2 court.
The momentum carried over into singles action as GGC players captured the opening set on five of the six courts.
Lespes gave GGC a 2-0 match lead with a dominant straight-set triumph on the No. 1 court. The NAIA's top-ranked singles player won six of the seven games during the opening set. She then closed out her match against Milwaukee's Babette Burgersdijk with a 6-2 victory.
"Justine played strong all day. It was nice to get quality matches for all of our players as we prepare for nationals (coming May 14-18)," said Head Coach
Hannah Keeling.
Senior
Stephanie Fernandez won the last six games of the second set at No. 5 singles to gain a 6-4, 6-2 win against Emilia Durska. Fernandez stands 9-0 on the season, including a 6-0 mark in matches on the No. 5 court.
Senior
Iryna Lysykh collected GGC's fourth match point with a 6-1, 7-5 victory on the No. 2 court. Lysykh, the No. 20-ranked singles player, broke Nadiia Konieva's serve at 5-5 in the second set and then closed out the match with a strong service game.
Senior
Teodora Jovic improved to 7-1 on the season with a 6-1, 6-3 win against Milwaukee's Laure Razet on the No. 3 court. The No. 13-ranked singles player has won six of those matches at No. 3 singles.
Gatti rounded out Thursday's winners with a 6-1, 7-5 victory against Sara Simonova. The GGC player is undefeated in seven singles matches this spring.
"It was a great day for the women while facing a Division I program. We appreciate them coming to play us. We don't get the opportunity to do that very often. We performed well in both singles and doubles. There are still some areas of improvement, but overall we're moving in the right direction," said Head Coach
Hannah Keeling.
Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to host SCAD Atlanta on April 9 at the GGC Tennis Facility, starting at 6:30 p.m.
