Jan. 23, 2010
By Brian Ormiston
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - A week after taking on three nationally-ranked teams in the UCF Quad Tournament, the UCF women's tennis team officially opened the dual-match season Saturday with a 5-2 home victory vs. Florida Gulf Coast. The Knights (1-0) swept all three doubles contests and notched victories in four singles matches against the Eagles (0-2).
"We started a little slowly today. We were a little nervous and tentative in doubles, but the good thing is that we were able to turn it around and get rid of the jitters," said head coach Stephanie Nickitas. "FGCU has some strong players, and we competed really hard including in the matches that we lost. The ladies should gain a lot of confidence from this because we beat a solid team. This is just the first step, though, in a long journey for us."
Kicking off the afternoon, UCF's doubles teams posted a win at all three spots. The No. 1 duo of senior Katie Orletsky and junior Jenny Frisell captured a 9-7 victory over Priscillia Villemond and Iris Rendon, while sophomore Alexis Rodriguez and freshman Jenna Doerfler got past Jessica Sweeting and Katharine Evans, 8-6, at No. 2. And over at No. 3, sophomore Christy Core and freshman Allison Hodges cruised by Eva Sambrano and Bibiana Almeida, 8-4.
Two Knights who did not compete on the doubles courts got into the action in singles. Sophomore Andrea Yacaman surrendered just three games in a 6-3, 6-0 triumph at No. 1 vs. Almeida, and sophomore Taylor Dubins did a tad better with a 6-0, 6-2 win at No. 6 against Morgan Bechtel.
UCF's other two victories came from Nos. 2 and 5, where Rodriguez defeated Iris Rendon, 7-6(0), 6-1, at No. 2, and Orletsky moved by Farah Leclercq at No. 5, 6-3, 6-2.
UCF now has a huge week ahead, as it will travel to Gainesville to meet Florida Wednesday before hosting Michigan State and Florida Atlantic next weekend.
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Tennis Match ResultsFlorida Gulf Coast vs UCF1/23/2010 at Orlando, Fla.
UCF 5, Florida Gulf Coast 2
Singles competition1. Andrea Yacaman (UCF) def. Bibiana Almeida (FGCU) 6-3, 6-02. Alexis Rodriguez (UCF) def. Iris Rendon (FGCU) 7-6 (7-0), 6-13. Jessica Sweeting (FGCU) def. Jenna Doerfler (UCF) 6-4, 6-44. Priscillia Villemond (FGCU) def. Allison Hodges (UCF) 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (10-6)5. Katie Orletsky (UCF) def. Farah Leclercq (FGCU) 6-3, 6-26. Taylor Dubins (UCF) def. Morgan Bechtel (FGCU) 6-0, 6-2
Doubles competition1. Jenny Frisell/Katie Orletsky (UCF) def. Priscillia Villemond/Iris Rendon (FGCU) 9-72. Jenna Doerfler/Alexis Rodriguez (UCF) def. Jessica Sweeting/Katharine Evans (FGCU) 8-63. Allison Hodges/Christy Core (UCF) def. Eva Sambrano/Bibiana Almeida (FGCU) 8-4
Match Notes:Florida Gulf Coast 0-2UCF 1-0