BELMONT, N.C. – No. 40 Averett University women's tennis went two for two on Saturday afternoon at Division-II Belmont Abbey College, taking the two matches 4-3 by slim margins, then 6-1 at the Reidy Tennis Center.
Tensions were quite high in the first dual of the day at the Reidy Tennis Center. Averett (6-3) and Belmont Abbey (8-15) split No. 2 and No. 3 doubles before the home team snatched the last duo match to attain the first point.
Belmont Abbey went up 2-0, winning at No. 4 with Leilany Sanchez, then
Ravaka Ramanantoanina got a point back for the visitors with a 6-2, 6-1 triumph. The two teams split matches at No. 1 and No. 5, with
Siddhi Khot being the victor for Averett to keep the Cougars in reach. 3-2 was the scoreline for the Crusaders, until
Annika Kellerer crawling back from a set down, winning the second set in a tiebreak (9-7), then the super-tiebreaker 10-7 to knot things up at three apiece.
It was down to Belmont Abbey's Paola Socarras and Averett's
Dilara Sultanova, and like her teammate, showed major resolve. A set up, Sultanova closely lost the second in her own set tiebreak, but put the past behind, and locked in for the final set 10-pointer. The Izmer, Turkey native snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, and completed the comeback for the Cougars, winning 4-3 overall.
The second dual got off to a stellar start, as Averett swept doubles right out of the gates to take the first point. Dominance continued, a
Sunna Maass blanked Anna Steiner without dropping a game to double the Cougars' lead.
Jennika Jaison won at No. 1 singles to inch closer, but Belmont Abbey gave the home team hope with a win at No. 5.
Amelie Schroeder won at No. 3 singles, then
Brenda Poulakidas battled at No. 2, fighting through a drawn-out third set super-tiebreaker, eventually winning 10-7 to clinch the first dual.
Mirte Post wrapped it up at No. 6 with a 6-1, 6-2 victory.
The wins marked the women's tennis team's first wins over a Division-II opponent since last April versus Winston-Salem State University.
Averett returns right back home to its home courts on Wednesday, March 26, hosting Pfeiffer University for a non-conference tune-up. Start time is set for 1 p.m.
