It was a long six-day tournament for Indiana women’s tennis. The Hoosiers hit the road and headed to the University of Cincinnati to play in the ITA Ohio Valley Regional Championship from Oct. 8 to 13.
Although the singles and doubles battled, they did not bring home a national title. However, they got close.
The singles competition opened the tournament’s qualifying play Oct. 8. Junior Gabby Gregg lost her first matchup, 6-0, 3-6, 5-7, against Lipscomb University senior Deborah Dominguez Collado. Gregg started the match with a strong all-around play, but lost momentum as the match progressed.
Junior Nicole Sifuentes won her first match 6-1, 6-1, against Tennessee State University junior Julie Tungamirai. She advanced to the next round later that day to face Belmont University junior Savannah Webster. Sifuentes won the first set 6-3, then lost the second set 3-6, but pulled out a 6-3 win in the third set.
Sifuentes qualified and moved into the main draw, where she played two more matches. The first came against redshirt sophomore Isabelle Einess from Western Kentucky University. Sifuentes pulled out a win 6-1, 7-6, and advanced to the next round, but fell short to Clemson University freshman Rinon Okuwaki.
Sophomore Mansi Vadyala competed against East Tennessee State University senior Julia Millan. Vadyala put up a fight in the first set but lost 4-6, 2-6, eliminating her from the round of 64.
Senior Li Hsin Lin competed against Middle Tennessee State University junior Zhanel Rustemova in the round of 64. Lin struggled in the first set and tied it in the second. She came close to winning but ultimately didn’t pull through, losing 2-6, 6-7.
Sophomore Ameia Sorey lost her first singles match 4-6, 3-6, to sophomore Audrey Aulia, from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Senior Elisabeth Dunac dominated her first match, defeating Miami University sophomore Allie Faulkner 6-0, 6-1. She advanced to the next round but fell short to senior Julia Zhu from the University of Kentucky 0-6, 4-6.
Sophomore Hi'ilani Williams had a powerful first match against Webster, winning 6-1, 6-3. This led her into the next round to face Kentucky junior Asuncion Jadue. Williams stayed consistent throughout the match but came up empty, losing the match 4-6, 4-6.
Doubles play started Oct. 9. Senior Chase Boyer and Gregg won against Butler University sophomore Sophie Parr and redshirt junior Elle Martin 8-5, advancing them into the round of 32.
On Oct. 10, they continued their winning streak, beating Belmont junior Jessica Popiol and graduate student Isabel Pacheco 8-3, giving the Hoosiers more life going into the round of 16. However, Boyer and Gregg couldn’t bring home a win. The duo lost to Tennessee senior Maeve Thornton and Okuwaki 2-8.
Sorey and Sifuentes defeated Belmont sophomore Emmi Kolyszko and Webster 8-4, then beat Kentucky fifth-year Ellie Myers and senior Avery Pope 8-7. The Hoosiers then lost in their round of 16 matches to Vanderbilt University sophomores Mia Yamakita and Erin Pearce.
Williams and Dunac advanced to the semifinals. Their first competitors, Cincinnati freshman Lucia Fuduric and junior Milica Popovski, withdrew from the match, allowing the Hoosiers to automatically advance.
Williams and Dunac went on to defeat Tennessee freshman Lisa Kamigata and junior Saray Yli-Piipari 8-5. In the quarterfinals, they were defeated in the tiebreaker by Vanderbilt junior Sophia Webster and senior Valeria Ray, 3-6, 7-5, 2-10.
Vadyala and Lin competed as a double but were defeated by University of Louisville senior Lika Peresypkina and freshman Ahniya Vustsina 3-8, eliminating the Hoosiers in the round of 64.
Indiana will turn its attention to the ITA Sectional Championships in Knoxville, Tennessee and the ITA Conference Masters Championships at the Rome Tennis Center in Rome, Georgia. Both tournaments will be played Nov. 5-8.
