Ohio State
ITA Midwest Regional
Buckeyes in Action at ITA Midwest Regional
10/21/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
Oct. 21, 2016
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State women’s tennis team traveled to East Lansing, Mich., for the ITA Midwest Regional Championships presented by Oracle. Junior Anna Sanford led the way for the Buckeyes, reaching the singles semifinals.
Winners of both the singles and doubles draws earn a spot in the 2016 USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships, which will be played Nov. 3-6 at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, N.Y.
Day 4 (Oct. 24)
At the ITA Midwest Regional Championships Monday, junior Anna Sanford rallied for a three-set win in the quarterfinals before falling in three sets in the semifinal round.
Sanford, ranked 41st, faced No. 11-ranked Brienne Minor of Michigan in the quarterfinals, with the Wolverine winning the first set, 6-2. Sanford tied the match with a 6-3 win in the second set and advanced with a 6-3 victory in the decisive set.
In the semifinals, Sanford faced Michigan’s Alex Najarian. Najarian won the first set, 6-4, before Sanford forced a third set with a 7-6 win in the second. In the third, the Wolverine prevailed 6-1 to reach the championship match.
Sanford ends the tournament with a 3-1 ledger, wih three of her four matches going three sets.
Day 3 (Oct. 23)
In singles action Sunday, junior Anna Sanford advanced to the quarterfinals with a straight set win over Louise Kwong of Illinois, 6-2, 6-0. She will take on No. 11-ranked Brienne Minor of Michigan at 10 a.m. Monday in the quarterfinals.
The singles semifinals will be played at 1 p.m. Monday, with the final match at 9 a.m. Tuesday.
The other Buckeyes in third round action dropped their matches. Senior Miho Kowase lost her first set against Kate Fahey of Michigan (7-5) before winning the second 7-5 to force a third set. The Wolverine prevailed with a 6-2 victory.
Senior Ferny Angeles Paz lost a close match to Monica Robinson of Notre Dame, 6-4, 7-5. Gabriella De Santis fell to Michigan’s Chiara Lommer, 7-6 (1), 6-0.
Day 2 (Oct. 22)
Doubles round three was held Saturday, along with the first two rounds of singles main draw action. Four Buckeyes advanced to the third round in the singles bracket, while the three Buckeye doubles tandems were eliminated.
Senior Ferny Angeles Paz posted two singles wins Saturday. She won in straight sets in the first round, defeating Avgeri of DePaul, 6-4, 6-2. In round two, Angeles Paz won in three sets over Buckeye classmate Sandy Niehaus, 6-1, 2-6, 6-3. Niehaus had a first round bye.
Senior Miho Kowase, after a first round bye, dropped just one game in each set, defeating Or of Northwestern, 6-1, 6-1.
Senior Gabriella De Santis rallied from a set down to defeat Ruder-Hook of Michigan in the second set. De Santis lost the first set, 7-5, before prevailing in a tiebreaker to even the match. De Santis, who had a first round bye, rolled in the third, 6-2, to advance.
Junior Anna Sanford won in three sets over DePaul’s Lancanjan, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1. She had a bye into the second round.
The three Buckeye doubles teams in action Saturday all fell in the third round, with two in a tiebreaker. The duo of junior Olivia Sneed and Angeles Paz lost to Northwestern’s 5-8 seeded team of Larner and Or, 8-7 (3). Sanford and Kowase were defeated by Western Michigan’s Kuhle and Lyubomirova, 8-7 (3). De Santis and Niehaus lost to DePaul’s Shupenia and Avgeri, 8-5.
Day 1 (Oct. 21)
On the first day of action at the ITA Midwest Regional Championship , all three doubles teams advanced to the third round.
Junior Olivia Sneed and senior Ferny Angeles Paz, a No. 9-12 seed, took on the Youngstown State tandem of Lackova and Macias in the first round, winning 8-2. In the second round, the Buckeye duo advanced with an 8-3 win over Michigan State’s Trouillot and Memije. They will play Larner and Or of Northwestern, a 5-8 seed, in the third round.
After a first round bye, No. 3 seeded seniors Gabriella De Santis and Sandy Niehaus prevailed over Chawafambira and Osabuohien of Northern Illinois in a tiebreaker, 8-7 (5). In the third round they will face Depaul’s Shupenia and Avgeri.
Senior Miho Kowase and junior Anna Sanford, the No. 4 seed, had a first round bye and then shut out Akron’s Echeverry and Pedroso, 8-0, to advance. The tandem, the tournament’s defending champion, will play Kuhle and Lyubomirova of Western Michigan in round three.
In the singles draw, Sanford and De Santis are 5-8 seeds, with Niehaus a 9-12 seed and Kowase a 13-16 seed and all received first round byes. Angeles Paz will play her first round match at 10 a.m. Friday. Sanford’s second round match is set for 2 p.m., with Niehaus slated to take the court at 2:30 p.m. and Kowase and De Santis scheduled for 3:30 p.m. matches.
ITA Midwest Regional
Doubles Main Draw
First Round (Oct. 21)
Sneed/Angeles Paz (Ohio State) def. Lackova/Macias (YSU), 8-2
Second Round (Oct. 21)
Sneed/Angeles Paz (Ohio State) def. Trouillot/Memije (MSU), 8-3
De Santis/Niehaus (Ohio State) def. Chawafambira/Osabuohien (NIU), 8-7 (5)
No. 5 Sanford/Kowase (Ohio State) def. Echeverry/Pedroso (Akron), 8-0
Third Round (Oct. 22)
Larner/Or (Northwestern) def. Sneed/Angeles Paz (Ohio State), 8-7 (3)
Shupenia/Avgeri (DePaul) def. De Santis/Niehaus (Ohio State), 8-5
Kuhle/Lyubomirova (WMU) def. No. 5 Sanford/Kowase (Ohio State), 8-7 (5)
Singles Main Draw
First Round (Oct. 22)
Ferny Angeles Paz (OSU) def. Avgeri (DePaul), 6-4, 6-2
Second Round
Ferny Angeles Paz (OSU) def. No. 67 Sandy Niehaus (OSU), 6-1, 2-6, 6-3
No. 68 Anna Sanford (OSU) def. Lancanjan (DePaul), 6-3, 3-6, 6-1
No. 99 Miho Kowase (OSU) def. Or (Northwestern), 6-1, 6-1
No. 79 Gabriella De Santis (OSU) def. Ruder-Hook (Michigan), 5-7, 7-6 (7), 6-2
Third Round (Oct. 23)
No. 68 Anna Sanford (OSU) def. No. 85 Kwong (ILL), 6-2, 6-0
No. 63 Robinson (ND) def. Ferny Angeles Paz (OSU), 6-4, 7-5
No. 41 Fahey (MICH) def. No. 99 Miho Kowase (OSU), 7-5, 5-7, 6-2
Lommer (MICH) def. No. 79 Gabriella De Santis (OSU), 7-6 (1), 6-0
Quarterfinals (Oct. 24)
No. 68 Anna Sanford (OSU) def. No. 11 Brienne Minor (MICH), 2-6, 6-3, 6-3
Semifinals (Oct. 24)
Alex Najarian (MICH) def. No. 68 Anna Sanford (OSU), 6-4, 6-7, 6-1
Singles Consolation
Van Der Goot (DET) def. Andrea Ballinger (OSU) 4-6, 6-4, 1-0 (7)
Andrea Ballinger (OSU) def. Echeverry (Akron), 6-1, 5-7, 1-0 (7)
