CAYCE, S.C. – A few additional rain showers Saturday afternoon disrupted play once again on the third day of the 2019 BIG EAST Tennis Championship presented by Jeep. Saturday’s action picked up in the morning with suspended matches from Friday, but afternoon rain showers postponed the tournament yet again into Sunday.
On Saturday morning, No. 4 DePaul men were quick to pick up the clinching point against No. 5 Creighton after being up 3-1 when play was suspended. For the women, No. 1 Xavier secured the doubles point Friday and went on to win 4-1 against No. 8 Georgetown, while No. 2 DePaul made quick work of No. 7 Creighton, 4-0.
Despite losing the doubles point, DePaul turned things around by taking the first three singles points on Friday before the suspension. Luuk Wassenaar clinched the match for the Blue Demons on court No. 3 by defeating Creighton’s Armando Gandini in three sets, 3-6, 6-2, 6-3, to earn the last spot in the semifinals.
Nick Campbell and Mac Mease outdid Boris Spanjaard and Chris Casati, 6-1, on the No. 1 doubles court, along with Daniel Lopez-Rey and Jose Oscar Diaz’s victory at No. 2 to clinch the doubles point for the Bluejays.
DePaul took over in singles play as Vito Tonejc knocked off Nick Campbell in the top spot, 6-3, 6-3. At No. 4, Chris Casati was victorious against Jose Oscar Diaz, 6-3, 6-0, and Fran Tonejc defeated Mac Mease, 6-2, 6-3 to seal the victory.
Xavier women won the doubles point versus Georgetown on Friday as Ahmeir Kyle and Emily Thomas partnered to take down Sydney Goodson and Risa Nakagawa at No. 1, 6-2. Hunter Roper and Rachael Reichenbach were triumphant over Anna Short and Elena De Santis to clinch on court No. 3.
Roper won her match at No. 5 against Short, 6-1, 6-3, for the first singles point. Nakagawa scored the Hoyas’ point on court No. 4 against Reichenbach, 6-3, 6-0. Thomas was victorious at No. 3, 6-4, 6-0, versus De Santis, and Kyle clinched the match for the Musketeers at No. 1, 6-3, 7-5, defeating Sofie Moenster.
The Blue Demon women locked in the doubles point en route to a 4-0 win over Creighton. Keisha Clousing along with Lenka Antonijevic got the win on the top court, 6-3, over Ashley Ishimura and Sarah Wilcox. Aspasia Avgeri and Alina Kuzmenkova clinched the point at No.3, 6-4, against Michaela Henne and Claire Embree.
DePaul kept its momentum going by claiming the first three matches and the sweep. Marija Jovicic defeated Erin Epperson, 6-0, 6-2, at No. 4, and Maddie Yergler was victorious, 6-3, 6-0 at No. 5 versus Embree. Milica Tesic closed out the match with a 6-0, 6-1 win over Gabby O’Connor.
The St. John’s women wasted no time in eliminating Seton Hall, 4-0, to advance to the semifinals. Delia Arranz and Gabriela Tenorio teamed up to defeat Melody Taal and Michal Matson, 6-1, in No. 3 doubles, while Olaya Inclan Solis and Oceane Garibal secured the point, defeating Thandy Kangwa and Minja Gligic, 6-2 at No. 2.
At No. 1 singles, Jessica Livianu outdid Anicka Fajnorova, 6-0, 6-1, while Najah Dawson was triumphant against Matson, 6-1, 6-2, at No. 4. Arranz secured the match on the No. 5 court, 6-2, 6-2, versus Gligic.
The final completed match of the day proved to be the most exciting as No. 6 Villanova upset No. 3 Marquette after the teams were deadlocked at three points apiece. Carina Burdick managed to come out on top at No. 5 singles against Elisabeth Desmarais after three sets, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, to clinch the victory for the Wildcats.
Villanova jumped out to an early lead by claiming the doubles point. Lexi DeNucci and Kaylan Rotman won at the No. 2 spot against Desmarais and Isabella Franks, 6-3. On the top court, Claudia Althans and Lindsey Evans finished off Natalija Popovic and Fleur Eggink, 7-5.
Claudia Althans took care of business versus Popovic, 6-0, 6-3, for the first singles point at No. 2. Rotman defeated Alexandrina Chinkova, 7-5, 6-0, on court No. 4 to give the Wildcats a 3-0 advantage. The Golden Eagles won three points in a row beginning with Lesley Foe’s win at No. 6 versus Olivia Kapp, 6-1, 6-4. Eggink topped DeNucci, 6-3, 7-6(4), at No. 1. At No. 3, Milica Novakovic was victorious against Evans, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2, to tie the match at three points apiece before Burdick’s magic secured the win.
The modified schedule for Sunday will feature the conclusion of the men’s semifinal matches between No. 1 St. John’s against No. 4 DePaul and No. 2 Butler battling No. 3 Marquette, beginning at 10 a.m. ET. The Red Storm and Bulldogs both lead with the doubles point, 1-0. Follow along with live stats
here.
The women are slated to hit the courts on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET. No. 2 DePaul will face No. 6 Villanova, while No. 1 Xavier challenges No. 4 St. John’s for a chance at the title. Live stats can be found
here.
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