Athens, Ga.--The No. 72-ranked Georgia State
women's tennis team dropped its final match at the ITA Kick-Off Weekend on
Monday afternoon, a 7-0 decision at No. 6 Georgia.
The
Panthers (2-1) advanced to the finals against the Bulldogs (2-0) after notching
a 4-3 win over No. 40 Oklahoma State on Sunday. It was the first time in
program history Georgia State advanced to the finals at the ITA Kick-Off
Weekend.
Georgia
State's No. 2 doubles pair of seniors Whitney Byrd and Maryna Kozachenko were
tied 6-all when doubles play was halted. The GSU duo played Georgia's Mia King
and Lauren Herring in the No. 2 slot. Senior Abigail Tere-Apisah, ranked No. 29
in the ITA National Singles rankings, dropped a narrow 3-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-8)
match against No. 8-ranked Lauren Herring at No. 1 singles.
It
is the second season in a row the Georgia State women's tennis team split its
matches at the ITA Kick-Off Weekend. The team has now competed in three of the
last four prestigious ITA Kick-Off Weekend events.
Georgia
State eyes another nationally-ranked showdown on Saturday, Feb. 2 in Atlanta
against No. 27-ranked Illinois. The Fighting Illini (2-4) are coming off
back-to-back losses to No. 19 Ole Miss and No. 25 Vanderbilt at their ITA
Kick-Off Weekend event in Oxford, Miss. GSU and Illinois will play the match at
10 a.m. on Saturday at The Standard Club in Johns Creek, Ga.
Visit
the women's tennis page on GeorgiaStateSports.com for a preview of the match.
#6 Georgia 7, #72
Georgia State 0
Singles competition
1. #8 Lauren Herring
(UGA) def. #29 Abigail Tere-Apisah (GSU) 3-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-4)
2. #18 Maho Kowase
(UGA) def. Masa Grgan (GSU) 6-0, 6-0
3. #54 Kate Fuller
(UGA) def. Whitney Byrd (GSU) 6-3, 6-3
4. Silvia Garcia
(UGA) def. Linn Timmermann (GSU) 6-1, 6-0
5. Mia King (UGA)
def. Jocelyn Ffriend (GSU) 6-2, 6-1
6. Lilly Kimbell
(UGA) def. Maryna Kozachecnko (GSU) 6-3, 6-0
Doubles competition
1. Kate Fuller/Silvia
Garcia (UGA) def. #19 Abigail Tere-Apisah/Masa Grgan (GSU) 8-4
2. Mia King/Lauren
Herring (UGA) vs. Whitney Byrd/Maryna Kozachecnko (GSU) 6-6, unfinished
3. #22 Lilly Kimbell/Maho Kowase (UGA) def. Jocelyn Ffriend/Linn Timmermann
(GSU) 8-6
www.GeorgiaStateSports.com
