WKU Tennis Team Wins at Belmont

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WBKO) - The WKU Tennis team continued its 2023 season on Sunday with a 5-2 win against Belmont. The Lady Toppers improve to 5-3 on the year, while the Bruins fall to 2-3.

The Lady Toppers won the doubles point for the third consecutive match. The Bruins struck first, winning the court one match, 6-1, but the Lady Toppers responded winning on courts two and three. At No. 3, Sayda Hernandez and Mariana Zegada earned their first win as a duo, while only dropping one game, 6-1. Shortly after, Sofia Blanco and Rachel Hermanova secured the doubles point on court two, winning 6-4. The two improve to, a team-best, 5-1 in doubles on the year.

In singles play, the Bruins evened the score after the first match finished, winning on court one. Zegada took the win on court six to regain the lead for the Lady Toppers, 6-4, 6-0. The sophomore gets her third win in a row and improves to 5-2 on the season. Belmont was able to tie the match 2-2 after winning on court two, but that would be the final point the Bruins would add to the scoreboard.

Sunskrithi Damera claimed the third point for WKU on court five, winning in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1. The junior improves to 5-3 on the year and gets her second win in a row. With the match-clinching point, Blanco secured the win for the Lady Toppers winning in a thrilling three-set match. The sophomore dropped the first set, but rallied to get the 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 decision and seal the victory. Rachel Hermanova added the fifth point of the day, also winning in three sets, 4-6, 7-5, 6-1. The sophomore improves to 6-2 this season and 25-7 in her career. She is now tied for sixth all-time for singles wins in program history, tied with Nina Kostava (2000-02) and Lisa Friess (2017, 2019-21).

“Winning the doubles point was huge in this match.” head coach Greg Davis said. “We used that momentum and it helped us keep the lead throughout the match. Our team played with a tremendous amount of heart, and I couldn’t be happier for them. It took a true team effort to beat a very talented Belmont team.”

The Lady Toppers continue the spring campaign next week in Bowling Green, with a matchup against Murray State on Friday, February 10. The match will begin at 6 p.m. CT at the Warren County Tennis Complex.

Final Results

Singles (Order of finish: 1,6,2,5,4,3)

1: Mariia Hlahola (BU) def. Paola Cortez (WKU) 6-2, 6-3

2: Abi Solomon (BU) def. Sayda Hernandez (WKU) 7-6 (5), 6-4

3: Rachel Hermanova (WKU) def. Meredith Roberts (BU) 4-6, 7-5, 6-1

4: Sofia Blanco (WKU) def. Taylor Trondson (BU) 5-7, 6-1, 6-1

5: Sunskrithi Damera (WKU) def. Libbie Hamilton (BU) 6-3, 6-1

6: Mariana Zegada (WKU) def. Aly Getty (BU) 6-4, 6-0

Doubles (Order of finish 1,3,2)

1: Hlahola/Solomon (BU) def. Cortez/Martinez (WKU) 6-1

2: Blanco/Hermanova (WKU) def. Roberts/Trondson (BU) 6-4

3: Hernandez/Zegada (WKU) def. Hamilton/Getty (BU) 6-1