No. 11 Gamecocks Fall in SEC Tournament Semifinals
April 22, 2017
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — No. 11 South Carolina women’s tennis was competitive across the board, but couldn’t pull through as it fell to No. 2 Vanderbilt, 4-1 on Saturday in the semifinals of the 2017 SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tenn. With the loss, the Gamecocks fell to 18-8 on the year, while the Commodores improved to 19-5 overall.
The Gamecocks fell behind 1-0 after doubles as Vanderbilt earned tightly contested wins on courts one and two. Emily Smith and Astra Sharma (3) claimed a 6-4 victory over Hadley Berg and Paige Cline (29) on court one, but the Gamecocks fired back with a 7-5 win on court three from Rachel Rohrabacher and Caroline Dailey. Ingrid Gamarra Martins and Brigit Folland battled to a tiebreak but eventually fell 7-6(3) on court two.
Carolina was able to claim one singles point before Vanderbilt was able to close out the match with three singles points to make a 4-1 final. Christina Rosca (96) doubled the Commodores lead with a 6-3, 6-4 win on court three. Sydney Campbell (11) contributed next with a 6-4, 7-6(2) tiebreak victory in the No. 2 spot. Silvia Chinellato got the Gamecocks on the board with a three-set 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 win over Emma Kurtz on court four. Before South Carolina could mount a rally on courts five and six, Astra Sharma (4) posted a 6-7(2), 6-1 6-1 triumph on court one to clinch the match.
RESULTS
1. #4 Astra Sharma (VU) def. #58 Mia Horvit (SC) 6-7(2), 6-1, 6-1
2. #11 Sydney Campbell (VU) def. #45 Ingrid Gamarra Martins (SC) 6-4, 7-6(2)
3. #96 Christina Rosca (VU) def. Caroline Dailey (SC) 6-3, 6-4
4. Silvia Chinellato (SC) def. Emma Kurtz (VU) 5-7, 6-2, 6-2
5. Hadley Berg (SC) vs. Georgina Sellyn (VU) UNF
6. Brigit Folland (SC) vs. #69 Fernanda Contreras (VU) UNF
DOUBLES (1, 3, 2)
1. #3 Emily Smith/Astra Sharma (VU) def. #29 Hadley Berg/Paige Cline (SC) 6-4
2. Emma Kurtz/Sydney Campbell (VU) def. Brigit Folland/Ingrid Gamarra Martins (SC) 7-6(3)
3. Rachel Rohrabacher/Caroline Dailey (SC) def. #72 Fernanda Contreras/Christina Rosca (VU) 7-5
Up Next
South Carolina will return to play in the first round of the NCAA tournament beginning May 12. For more information on South Carolina women’s tennis team follow them on Facebook and Twitter at gamecockwtennis or check out GamecocksOnline.com.
