Gamecocks Drop Georgia Matchup
Columbia, S.C. – South Carolina women’s tennis fell to No. 23 Georgia in a 4-1 decision on Sunday. In the loss, junior No. 66 Ayana Akli upset the No. 25 singles player in straight sets.
The doubles point was closely contested, and the Gamecocks dominated in the No. 1 spot. Megan Davies and Sarah Hamnerfaced their second ranked foes of the weekend in No. 62 Ania Hertel and Morgan Coppoc. After starting 1-1, Davies and Hamner cruised to a 6-1 win to secure the first doubles victory.
On Court 1, Akli and Ana Cruz quickly went up 4-2 over their Georgia opponents. The Bulldogs fought back to tie the Gamecocks at 5-5. Georgia pulled ahead from there to win 7-5, snapping Akli and Cruz’s undefeated home record.
Elise Mills and Misa Malkin paired together for the second time this spring at the bottom of the lineup. They dropped two of the first three games before building to a 4-2 lead. Georgia eventually caught up to tie the match at 5-5 and won the next two games to clinch the doubles point.
In singles, Georgia earned its second point with a straight sets win on Court 4, but South Carolina would not go unanswered.
In the No. 2 spot, No. 66 Akli dominated in her first set against No. 25 Mell Reasco. Akli won the first three games before Reasco was able to respond. The Gamecock junior continued to build to a 5-1 lead and allowed two more games before securing the 6-3 win. Reasco looked to be in control in the second set which she led 3-1, but Akli came back from behind to tie things up. The Bulldog won one more game, but it was Akli who prevailed. She hit a mid-court backhand that Reasco sent out of bounds and gave the Gamecocks their first point in the match.
Meanwhile, play was quick to finish on Courts 6 and 3, respectively. Cruz built a 4-0 lead in the first set over No. 122 Ania Hertel before the Bulldog came away with the 6-4 win. Hertel earned the next point for Georgia with a 6-0 second set to bring it closer to the win. In the No. 3 spot, Davies faced No. 113 Dasha Vidmanova who controlled the first set to a 6-1 win. Davies fought hard in the second set and went up 3-1 before Vidmanova caught up. From there, the Bulldog took the next three games to earn the winning point for Georgia.
At the top of the lineup, No. 2 Hamner played a close match with No. 49 Lea Ma. Hamner quickly went up 5-0 in the first set on the way to her 6-1 win. Ma came back to take the second set 6-3 and the two were tied 1-1 in the final set when play was suspended.
On Court 5, Malkin dropped her first set 6-1 to No. 71 Meg Kowalski. The Gamecock newcomer found her groove in the second set and went up 5-2 before play was suspended.
South Carolina will continue SEC play on the road next weekend with matches at Arkansas on Friday at 6 p.m. and Missouri Sunday at 11 a.m.
(23) Georgia def. (59) South Carolina 4-1
Doubles (Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3*)
1. Megan Davies/Sarah Hamner (SC) def. No. 62 Ania Hertel/Morgan Coppoc (UGA) 6-1
2. Mell Reasco/Dasha Vidmanova (UGA) def. Ayana Akli/Ana Cruz (SC) 7-5
3. Guillermina Grant/Meg Kowalski (UGA) def. Elise Mills/Misa Malkin (SC) 7-5
Singles (Order of Finish: 4, 2, 6, 3*)
1. No. 2 Sarah Hamner (SC) vs. No. 49 Lea Ma (UGA) 6-1, 3-6, 1-1 DNF
2. No. 66 Ayana Akli (SC) def. No. 25 Mell Reasco (UGA) 6-3, 6-4
3. No. 113 Dasha Vidmanova (UGA) def. Megan Davies (SC) 6-1, 6-3
4. Morgan Coppoc (UGA) def. No. 85 Elise Mills (SC) 6-4, 6-2
5. Misa Malkin (SC) vs. No. 71 Meg Kowalski (UGA) 1-6, 5-3 DNF
6. No. 122 Ania Hertel (UGA) def. Ana Cruz (SC) 6-4, 6-0
