Women's Tennis . January 16, 2021

South Carolina Grabs Two Wins to Begin 2021

Gamecocks Defeat ETSU 6-1, Coastal Carolina 5-2

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The 14th-ranked South Carolina women’s tennis team got its season underway Saturday with a pair of wins at Carolina Tennis Center. The Gamecocks defeated ETSU by a 6-1 score in their first match of the day and then defeated Coastal Carolina by a 5-2 margin. It was the first match of the season for ETSU, while Coastal Carolina dropped to 0-2 on the year.

ETSU Recap

South Carolina made short work of the Buccaneers in doubles, winning first at the No. 2 position where Emma Shelton and Allie Gretkowski upended Laylo Bakhodirova and Emilia Alfaro 6-0. Court three finished just seconds before court 1, as Ana Cruz and Elise Mills downed Andrea Pascual-Larrinaga and Maria Carvajal 6-1. Mia Horvit and Silvia Chinellato then closed out Mayya Gorbunova and Alejandra Morales at No. 1 singles 6-4.

Gretkowski, a newcomer for the Gamecocks this spring, made short work of her first collegiate singles opponent, disposing of Carvajal 6-2, 6-2 on court five to push Carolina’s lead to 2-0. Shelton won next, bouncing back from a 6-3 loss in the first set to Morales at the No. 2 spot to win 6-2, 6-1 in the subsequent sets. The All-American Horvit then sealed the win at No. 1 singles by downing Bakhodirova 7-6, 6-2.

Cruz extended the lead to 5-0 after grabbing a 6-4, 6-4 triumph over Yunuen Elizarraras at the six spot. ETSU countered with its lone win on the day courtesy of Alfaro over Mills 6-4, 7-6 at four. Chinellato finished off the contest with a 6-7, 6-1, 6-4 victory where she overcame a 4-1 deficit in the third set.

Coastal Carolina Recap

Emma Shelton and Allie Gretkowski continued their dominant doubles play from earlier in the day with another 6-0 win against Victoire De Samucewicz and Kristyna Jurkova at the two spot. Ana Cruz partnered with Gabriela Martinez for the Coastal Carolina match and the duo registered a 6-4 victory against Jesse Hollins and Mathidle Tranberg to clinch the point. Silvia Chinellato and Mia Horvit held on to beat Somer Dalla-Bona and Jessie Mount 7-6 at one, winning 7-0 in the tiebreak.

It did not take long for the Gamecocks to get their first two singles points, as 34th-ranked Horvit wasted no time picking up a 6-0, 6-2 win from Iryna Vardanian at the top slot. Gretkowski then added to the point total by downing Jurkova 6-2, 6-3 on court four.

As the battles continued on the other four courts, Martinez eventually came through with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Mount at No. 6 singles to secure the Gamecocks’ second victory of the season. Soon afterward, though, the Chanticleers snatched their first point from court three with Tranberg coming back to defeat Chinellato 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Dalla-Bona cut the deficit to 4-2 with another win for the Chants, overcoming Shelton on court two with a 7-6, 0-6, 6-4 win. Cruz ended the evening on a positive note for South Carolina by tallying a 7-6, 6-3 win over Hollins at the fifth spot.

Notes

Head coach Kevin Epley now has 289 wins in his career and 138 in his ninth year with the Gamecocks. He is now in his 16th season overall as a head coach.
The Gamecocks are now 3-0 in the all-time series with ETSU and 6-0 against Coastal Carolina.
Newcomer Allie Gretkowski picked up her first collegiate wins on the day and posted a perfect 4-0 record between both matches.
Gretkowski and Emma Shelton did not surrender a game in both of their doubles contests at the No. 2 position.
Mia Horvit reached 90 career singles wins with her victory against Coastal Carolina. She is just the ninth Gamecock to eclipse the 90-win plateau and is two wins away from tying Brigit Folland for eighth place on the all-time list.
South Carolina has now won seven matches in a row dating back to last season.
Mia Horvit, Allie Gretkowski and Ana Cruz all posted 4-0 records on the day.