EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State women’s tennis women’s tennis opened its second-straight weekend of hosting a tournament with strong play from multiple players Friday in the opening round of the Spartan Invite at the MSU Indoor Tennis Center.
The morning opened with singles matches with four Spartans taking the courts. Senior Liisa Vehviläinen, junior Issey Purser along with freshmen Ellie Blackford and Amara Brahmbhatt took to the courts, all slating singles wins for the team and moving onto the next round. Vehviläinen knocked off Jennifer Riester of Northwestern, 6-4, 6-1, Purser dispersed Eastern Michigan’s Prerna Vichare, 6-3, 6-1.
Blackford beat Iowa’s Barbora Pokorna, 6-4, 6-2, and Brahmbhatt beat another Hawkeye, Nikita Vishwase, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3.
The second flight of matches had redshirt sophomores Oriana Parkins-Godwin and Natalie Stasny playing against opponents from Butler and DePaul.
Parkins-Godwin was able to dominate in her match against Butler’s Norah Balthazor, securing the win, 6-4, 6-1.
Stasny battled back from losing her first set 4-6 against Eva Goncharov of DePaul, splitting the match and forcing a third set after winning the second set 6-4. Stasny was able to complete the comeback, winning the final set, 6-4.
Junior Sarah Fazlagic took to the court for the first time this season, versing a DePaul foe, Isabella Gibson. Fazlagic had a hard-hitting performance, but was unable to secure the win, falling in straight sets.
Doubles matches began in the afternoon, with four Michigan State tandems competing. Pairs Parkins-Godwin/Purser, Brahmbhatt/Stasny, Blackford/Vehvilainen returned to the courts for doubles play, while freshman Olivia Kutlova made her Spartan debut with Fazlagic for doubles play.
The Parkins-Godwin/Purser and Fazlagic/Kutlova duos both faced pairs from DePaul, with Parkins-Godwin/Purser winning their match 6-2 over Nobbs/Goncharov. Meanwhile, the Fazlagic/Kutlova duo fell to Alvarez/Gibson, 2-6.
Brahmbhatt/Stasny fought hard against their Eastern Michigan opponents, securing a win 7-5. Finally, Blackford/Vehvilainen slated a final win for the day, moving on to the next round after topping Metcalf/Arington of Butler, 6-2.
The Spartans return to the courts of the MSU Indoor…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Michigan State University Athletics…