Top Seeds Advance to Finals of the BIG EAST Tennis Championship
CAYCE, S.C. – After an action-packed semifinal Saturday, No. 1 and No. 2 seeds will collide in the final match of both the men’s and women’s bracket at the 2016 BIG EAST Tennis Championship.
The women started off the day at 9 a.m., and No. 1 DePaul was the first to punch its ticket to the title match with a 4-0 win over Georgetown. Marina Cozac and Jarret Fisher clinched the doubles point with a 6-1 win over Sophie Barnard and Casey Marx. The Blue Demons followed that up with wins at the No. 4, 3, and 2 positions with Patricia Lancranjan securing the match with a 6-3, 600 at the No. 2 spot.
In the second semifinal, No. 3 St. John’s gave No. 2 Xavier all it could handle but it will be the Musketeers joining the Blue Demons in the Sunday morning matchup. After the Musketeers secured the doubles point, the Red Storm’s Olaya Inclan picked up a win at No. 5 singles over Sophi Abelson 6-1, 6-1 to even the score. Xavier then won at the No. 6 and No. 3 singles courts, with Amina Ismail getting the clincher 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, taking the dual match 4-1.
Xavier and DePaul will begin play at 9 a.m. Sunday morning.
On the men’s side, top seed St. John’s rebounded after dropping the doubles point to No. 5 Xavier to register a 4-1 win. All four of the Red Storm’s singles wins came in straight sets, as Roberto Livi shined at the No. 2 spot, clinching the semifinal 6-3, 6-3, and Dusan Vukicevic tallying a 6-2, 6-2 triumph.
Marquette swept DePaul 4-0 in the other semifinal in an intense matchup between rivals. Notching the doubles point, the Golden Eagles picked up wins at the No. 5 and No. 2 position before Daniel Fernandez sealed the match and ushered his team into the final with a 6-2, 6-3 win at No. 1 singles.
St. John’s and Marquette will also meet on Sunday at 9 a.m. in a rematch from the 2015 title match.
Along with the semifinals, there were four back draw matches as the Seton Hall women defeated Villanova 4-1, Marquette swept Creighton 4-0, and the Creighton men topped Butler 4-3, and the Hoyas’ men’s team swept Villanova 4-0.
Check @BIGEASTChamps, #BIGEASTtennis along with the Championship Central for the most up-to-date information on the 2016 BIG EAST Tennis Championship.