Friday's NAIA women's tennis national championship tournament semifinal match between top-seeded Georgia Gwinnett College and No. 4 Xavier University (Louisiana) featured multiple weather delays and momentum shifts before determining a winner in Mobile, Alabama.
At the end of the long day, and well into the night, the Grizzlies (17-0) withstood all of the weather elements to score a 4-1 victory by getting a pair of gutsy performances in singles matches.
That sends the team to Saturday's title match for the 10th time in program history.
GGC, the tournament's top seed, captured the doubles point behind strong play on the No. 1 and No. 3 courts. The NAIA's top-ranked pairing of seniors
Stephanie Fernandez and
Iryna Lysykh won six of the seven games on the No. 1 court. That was quickly followed by a 6-2 triumph from the junior duo of
Justine Lespes and
Carol Mora.
There were two brief rain delays during the doubles portion of the dual match.
GGC maintained the positive momentum in singles play, winning the first set on the No. 1, No. 2, No. 4, and No. 6 courts. That's when there was a two-and-a-half-hour weather delay with matches in the second set.
When play resumed once again, Lespes wasted no time in winning her match at the top of the singles lineup, defeating Mbali Langa 6-1, 6-3 – giving the Grizzlies a 2-0 lead.
After another rain delay, it was Xavier that mounted a rally, winning in straight sets at No. 5 singles and forcing a third set at No. 6 singles.
Lysykh broke Kareemah Muhammad's service game at 6-5 to force a tiebreaker, which she rallied from a 4-2 deficit to win five of the next six points. That gave her a 6-2, 7-6 (5) victory.
The triumph halted Xavier's momentum as Fernandez was leading in a third set at No. 6 singles and sophomore
Versace Gatti was in a second-set tiebreaker on the No. 4 court. Her late rally sealed victory for herself and the Grizzlies.
"We stayed calm under pressure and had a lot of focus in those pressure situations. The main thing was the players believed in themselves," said Head Coach
Hannah Keeling.
Coach's Corner
"There were unbelievable performances by Iryna and Versace. We got pushed by a very good Xavier team. The girls stepped up and showed how much they want to be in the national championship match. I'm super proud of them," said Head Coach
Hannah Keeling.
Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to play against No. 2 seed Keiser University (Florida) in the 2024 NAIA National Championship match on Saturday, May 18, beginning at 5 p.m. central time, at the 2024 NAIA National Championship Tournament being played at the Mobile Tennis Center in Mobile, Alabama.
