Women's Tennis . January 14, 2024

Gamecocks Record Five Wins on Second Day of Carolina Kickoff

Columbia, S.C. – South Carolina women’s tennis completed its second day of action at the Carolina Kickoff on Saturday. The team accounted for three singles wins and two doubles wins on the day, adding on to their two singles wins and one doubles win from Saturday.

The team began action in singles where graduate Ayana Akli and junior Olympe Lancelot combined for their second consecutive doubles victory together. The duo took down Auburn’s DJ Bennett and Adeline Flach 7-5.

Also with a doubles win on the day was junior Sarah Hamner and Misa Malkin who paired up for the first time since the 2021-22 season when they climbed as high as No. 20 in the ITA doubles rankings. The duo took down Auburn’s Ariana Arseneault and Kaitlyn Carnicella 6-3.

In singles, No. 6 Akli recorded the first singles win of the day 6-2, 6-4 over Wisconsin’s Taylor Cataldi to improve to 12-4 on the season.

Fellow graduate No. 76 Shahar Biran recorded the team’s next win with a straight set win over No. 87 Xinyu Cai of Wisconsin to claim her second ranked win of the season.

The final Gamecock win of the day came at the hands of Lancelot who battled for over three hours for her victory. The Florida State transfer battled through a gritty first two sets in which she and her opponent Kaja Jacobson split a pair of 7-5 results. In the final set, the Gamecock eared an early break and carried her momentum throughout to take the final set 6-3.

The Carolina Kickoff will conclude on Monday with one round of singles and one round of doubles. South Carolina is scheduled to begin doubles not before noon, followed by singles not before 3:00 p.m. Attendance is free and open to the public. Fans not in attendance can view live streaming here.

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

Day 2 Results

Singles

(6) Ayana Akli (SC) def. Taylor Catladi (WISC) 6-2, 6-4

(67) Maria Sholokhova (WISC) def. (4) Sarah Hamner (SC) 6-4, 6-4

(76) Shahar Biran (SC) def. (87) Xinyu Cai (WISC) 6-1, 7-5

Alina Mukhortova (WISC) def. Misa Malkin (SC) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3

Ariel Johnson (WISC) def. Elise Mills (SC) 5-7, 6-3, 6-3

Olympe Lancelot (SC) def. Kaja Jacobson (WISC) 7-5, 5-7, 6-3

Ellison Reynoldson (WISC) def. Anna Kantor (SC) 7-6(3), 6-0

Doubles

Ayana Akli/Olympe Lancelot (SC) def. DJ Bennett/Adeline Flach (AU) 7-5