CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – In a tough battle on Friday, No. 20 Georgia Tech claimed three singles matches at No. 12 Virginia, but the Cavaliers won the doubles point to clinch a 4-3 victory. The loss moved Tech to 10-7 overall and 4-5 in Atlantic Coast Conference play.
DOUBLES
Virginia jumped out with early advantages in doubles, taking 3-0 leads on all three courts. Court one wrapped up first as Melodie Collard and Julia Adams took a 6-1 decision over Kylie Bilchev and Alejandra Cruz. Virginia clinched the doubles point from court two where Elaine Chervinsky and Natasha Subhash opened with a 5-0 lead over Monika Dedaj and Kate Sharabura before pocketing a 6-1 decision to give the Cavaliers the 1-0 lead entering singles play.
SINGLES
The Cavaliers took the first three singles matches to finish to extend their lead to 4-0. Collard finished first on court six, collecting a 6-4, 6-3 decision over Sharabura before Sara Ziodato cushioned Virginia’s lead minutes later from court five. Ziodata pocketed a 6-2, 6-4 win over Rosie Garcia Gross to setup a 3-0 Virginia lead. The match was clinched by Virginia on court one where Subhash outlasted Carol Lee, 6-3, 6-3, to solidify the win for the Cavaliers.
Tech won the final three matches to account for the final 4-3 score. Bilchev put the Yellow Jackets on the scoreboard, pocketing a straight-set win on court two. Bilchev cruised in the first set, 6-0, and led 5-2 in the second set before Adams rallied back to 5-5. Bilchev took the match, winning a tiebreak, 7-5, for a 4-1 match tally.
Cruz split the opening two sets against Hibah Shaikh on court four. After dropping the first set, 6-3, Cruz raced out with a 3-1 lead in the second and forced a super tiebreak with a 6-2 win. In the super tiebreak, Cruz held a 6-3 lead, but Shaikh battled back to 6-6. Cruz fought off a match point and edged out Shaikh, 13-11, to claim the match.
Play concluded on court three where Mahak Jain took a three-set victory over Chervinsky. The Cavalier took the first set, 6-4, but Jain took control of the second set. Chervinsky held a 2-1 lead before Jain won five straight games to take the second set, 6-2. The two stood knotted at 3-3 in the deciding set before Jain rattled off three games to take the match, 3-6, 6-2, 6-3.
Georgia Tech returns to the courts on Sunday with a visit to Virginia Tech. First serve is slated for noon.
RESULTS
DOUBLES
1. No. 11 Melodie Collard/Julia Adams (UVA) def. No. 69 Kylie Bilchev/Alejandra Cruz (GT) 6-1
2. No. 9…
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