Akli, Hamner Advance to Quarterfinals

San Diego, Calif. – South Carolina women’s tennis graduate Ayana Akli and junior Sarah Hamner have both advanced to the quarterfinals of the ITA National Fall Championships after the second day of play. Both Gamecocks registered straight set wins in the second round to advance.

No. 25 Hamner made facing a fellow top-25 opponent look easy in her second-round match. Facing No. 23 Savannah Broadus of Pepperdine, Hamner breezed her way to a 6-1, 6-2 win to book her spot in the quarterfinals.

No. 7 Akli had a much closer battle against No. 99 Malaika Rapolu of Texas but still got her match completed in straight sets. The Gamecock claimed the win in a pair of tiebreakers, 7-6(6), 7-6(3).

In the quarterfinals, Akli will face No. 31 Anika Yarlagadda of North Carolina. The two have already faced once this fall at the NC State Ranked +1 with Yarlagadda coming out on top.

Hamner will take on either North Carolina’s Reese Brantmeier or Julia Fliegner of Michigan in her quarterfinal match.

Draws and results for the National Fall Championships are available on the tournament webpage. Live stats for quarterfinal matches will be available here with live streaming available here.

For all the latest South Carolina women’s tennis information, continue to follow GamecocksOnline.com or the team on social media (@GamecockWTennis).

ITA National Fall Championship Results

Singles

(7) Ayana Akli (SC) vs. (99) Malaika Rapolu (Texas) 7-6(6), 7-6(3)

(25) Sarah Hamner (SC) def. (23) Savannah Broadus (Pepperdine) 6-1, 6-2