Semifinals Set for the 2016 BIG EAST Tennis Championship
CAYCE, S.C. – The 2016 BIG EAST Tennis Championship charged forward into Friday, as teams vied to continue the chase for the conference crown and a bid to the NCAA Championship. The quarterfinals in both the men’s and women’s bracket produced some outstanding tennis as four teams advance to Saturdays semifinals.
The day began with three women’s matches at 9 a.m., setting the tone early for what would turn out to be an exciting day. Top-seeded DePaul took down No. 8 Creighton 4-0 where the Blue Demons cruised after securing the doubles point, recording wings in the No. 1, 3 & 5 positions all in straight sets. Yuliya Shupenia shined at No. 1 singles, defeating Ashley Ishimura 6-0, 6-2. No. 2 Xavier also notched a 4-0 win, this one over No. 7 seven Villanova, with wins coming at the 1, 3, & 5 spots.
The Red Storm and the Pirates rounded out the morning. Luize Strike and Hannah Liljekvist picked up a win at No. 1 doubles for Seton Hall but St. John’s answered back by rattling off wins at the No. 2 and No. 3 spots. Anna Morozova and Jade Collins clinched the doubles point for the Johnnies and Irina Preotescu would defeat Anna Fajinorova 6-0, 6-2 at the No. 3 spot to punch her team’s ticket to the semifinals with a 4-0 win.
In the lone women’s quarterfinal matchup of the afternoon, No. 4 Georgetown came back after dropping the doubles point to beat No. 5 Marquette 4-1. Rebounding from dropping the second set, Risa Nakagawa topped Erin Gebes 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 at No. 2 singles to clinch the team win for the Hoyas.
Both women’s semifinals will begin Saturday at 9 a.m. with DePaul matching up with Georgetown and St. John’s going up against Xavier.
On the men’s side, No. 1 seed St. John’s was dominant in a 4-0 win over Villanova with Alan Nunez Aguilera Tommy clinching the win at the No. 4 spot in straight sets. No. 2 Marquette put up a similar performance against Creighton, a 4-0 win secured by Greg Anderson’s 6-1, 6-4 victory at No. 5 singles.
Later in the afternoon, No. 3 DePaul held off No. 6 Georgetown 4-1. Sten Leusink performed spectacularly for the Blue Demon’s , teaming up with Nathan de Veer for a 6-1 win at No. doubles before taking down Mason Dragos 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 at No. 1 singles. In the 4-5 match, No. 5 Xavier upended No. 4 Georgetown 4-0. Aftering securing the doubles point, Trent Smith clinched the match at the No. 6 position, defeating Will Sharton 6-4, 6-4.
The men’s semifinals will take place at 12:30 with St. John’s taking on Xavier and Marquette clashing with DePaul.
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