Tuscaloosa, Ala.--Georgia State junior
Maryna Kozachenko won the Gold Draw singles title to pace the GSU women's
tennis team at the 2012 Roberta Alison Fall Classic this weekend hosted by the
University of Alabama.
Kozachenko
won two matches against competition from UAB, including a 6-2, 6-1 win against
Elaine Simon in the finals, to claim the singles title. Sophomore Masa Grgan
earned the consolation title in the singles Purple Draw with a 6-2, 6-2 victory
against Kentucky's Caitlin McGraw in the finals.
Grgan
teamed with Jocelyn Ffriend in the doubles Silver Draw to earn a spot in the
consolation final. The two won a second round match vs. UAB 8-5 before falling
narrowly in the final. Freshman Linn Timmermann won two singles matches against
competition from Mississippi State and Clemson on the weekend.
Sophomore
Chaimaa Roudami battled to a 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 win vs. Khristina Blajkevitch of
Kentucky and then a 6-2, 7-6 (5) win against MTSU's Flavia Nagayama. Ffriend
reached the semifinals of the singles Pink Draw with straight-set victories
against Alli Robbins of Ole Miss and Maggie Leavell of Vanderbilt.
A
total of 10 ranked teams competed in this year's ITA-sanctioned tournament.
Georgia State, ranked No. 69 in the final rankings of the 2011-12 season, was
joined by Alabama (No. 11), Auburn (73), Clemson (25), Florida State (40),
Georgia Tech (20), Michigan (14), Northwestern (12), Ole Miss (18) and
Vanderbilt (28). Other participants included Kentucky, Middle Tennessee State,
Mississippi State, Samford and UAB.
GSU,
led by sixth-year head coach Miha Lisac, begins preparations for the ITA
Southeast Regional Championships hosted by South Florida. The tournament begins
on Friday, Oct. 19 and continues all weekend. Visit the women's tennis page on
GeorgiaStateSports.com for a preview of the tournament.
www.GeorgiaStateSports.com