EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Penn State women's tennis team opened the season with a victory over Michigan State in a 4-3 match at East Lansing.
For the sixth consecutive year, the Nittany Lions will open the season 1-0.
"I'm so proud of the girls and how they fought on court today," said head coach Alex Anghelescu. "We've talked a lot about dealing with adversity on and off the court. Our expectations for the match were to have fun and enjoy every moment. Getting the W exceeded all the expectations that we had for them today, having not played a match in almost a year. Really excited to see what else this group can do!"
Doubles
Penn State secured the doubles point after going 2-1 in doubles matches.
Alexandra Nielsen (Vancouver, B.C., Canada) Gabby O'Gorman (Gunnedah, N.S. Wales, Australia) took control in a 6-3 victory over Maja Pietrowicz and Ayshe Can.
Frederikke Svarre (Copenhagen, Denmark) and Samantha Smith (Cary, N.C.) handled business against Mary Lewis and Dagmar Zdrubecka, winning 6-2.
Alina Lebedeva (Moscow, Russia) and Olivia Ryan (Victoria, Australia) fell to Samantha Memije and Nicole Stephens, 2-6.
Singles
O'Gorman defeated Lewis in a three-set match, 3-6, 6-1, 6-1.
Svarre came through in a tough earned victory over Lauren Lemonds, 7-6, 3-6, 7-5.
Smith fell in a 4-6, 3-6 match against Memije.
Ryan lost her match against Pietrowicz, 1-6, 1-6.
Nielsen came up short in a 5-7, 5-7 loss to Can.
Lebedeva debuted with a victory over Zdrubecka, 6-1, 6-3.
Match Notes
Four Nittany Lions also competed in additional exhibion matches that will not count toward final statistics.
Olivia Rohrbacher (Sandusky, Ohio) claimed a three-set victory over Tia Mukherjee, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5.
Gracey Hirsch (Cincinnati, Ohio) was defeated by Jennifer Timotin, 1-6, 4-6.
Sydney Weinberg (Winchester, Mass.) won against Caroline Szabo, 6-3, 6-4.
Danielle Alamo (Tampa, Fla.) lost to Kate Harvey, 2-6, 2-6.
Up Next
The Nittany Lions will return home a matchup against Indiana on Friday, Feb. 12.
Doubles Final
Alexandra Nielsen/Gabby O'Gorman (PSU) def. Maja Pietrowicz/Ayshe Can (MSU) 6-3
Frederikke Svarre/Samantha Smith (PSU) def. Mary Lews/Dagmar Zdrubecka (MSU) 6-2
Samantha Memije/Nicole Stephens (MSU) def. Alina Lebedeva/Olivia Ryan (PSU) 2-6
Singles Final
Gabby O'Gorman (PSU) def. Mary Lewis (MSU) 3-6, 6-1, 6-1
Frederikke Svarre (PSU) def. Lauren Lemonds (MSU) 7-6, 3-6, 7-5
Samantha Memije (MSU) def. Samantha Smith (PSU) 4-6, 3-6
Maja Pietrowicz (MSU) def. Olivia Ryan (PSU) 1-6, 1-6
Ayshe Can (MSU) def. Alexandra Nielsen (PSU) 5-7, 5-7
Alina Lebedeva (PSU) def. Dagmar Zdrubecka (MSU) 6-1, 6-3
Keep up with the Penn State women's tennis team at GoPSUsports.com. For continued updates throughout the year, make sure to `like' our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pennstatewten and follow our twitter @pennstateWTEN.
