JMU Drops 4-3 Battle with Elon in CAA Action

Saturday, April 2

Harrisonburg, Va.

10 a.m.

James Madison University

Elon

4/2/2016 3:13:00 PM | Women's Tennis

HARRISONBURG, Va. – James Madison and Elon's Colonial Athletic Association women's tennis match came down to the final singles decision as the Phoenix came away with the 4-3 victory on Saturday afternoon.

At No. 2 singles, junior Timea Guibe battled back from a 6-2 first-set loss to Erica Braschi for a 6-2 win in set two to force a decisive third set. Guibe pushed out to a 3-1 lead in the final set, but Braschi won the last five games to secure the 6-4 win and match point.

The loss, the first in CAA play for JMU this season, snapped the Dukes' five-match win streak. They are now 13-5 this season with a 4-1 mark in league play while Elon sits at 9-9 with a matching 4-1 CAA record.

Neither team led by more than a point and were tied three times throughout the course of the match. The final tie score came at 3-all when freshman Emma Petersen came back from a 7-5 first-set loss to Suzanne Zenoni to win the match with 6-1 and 6-4 victories at No. 4 singles.

JMU earned its first doubles victory with a solid 6-4 win by Guibe and sophomore Kimmy Herrock after trailing Braschi and Taylor Casey 3-1 at the No. 2 position. The Phoenix, however, were able to knot doubles play at 1-all with a 7-5 victory at the No. 1 position.

The freshman duo of Petersen and Bella Heidenreich clinched the doubles point for the Dukes with a 7-5 win of their own against Zenoni and Olivia Lucas at No. 3, overcoming a four-game swing by the Phoenix that tied the set at 5-all.

The Phoenix pulled even with the Dukes in the opening singles match, winning in straight 6-2 sets at the No. 1 position. They then pushed out to a 2-1 lead behind a two-set victory (6-4, 6-4) at No. 3 singles.

JMU pulled even with Elon behind a 6-2, 7-6(4) victory by junior Rebecca Harris at No. 6 singles, but the Phoenix immediately regained the lead at 3-2 with a 6-3, 7-6(3) win from Kirsten Ward at No. 5 singles over sophomore Dylan Owens.

The Dukes have a quick turnaround as they face Davidson on Sunday, April 3 at 3 p.m.

POSTGAME

FULL RESULTS
Doubles (2,1,3*)

Janowicz/Ward def. Abby Amos/Harris 7-5
Guibe/Herrock def. Braschi/Casey 6-4
Petersen/Bella Heidenreich def. Lucas/Zenoni 7-5

Singles (1,3,6,5,4,2*)

Olivia Lucas def. Rachel Nelson 6-2, 6-2
Erica Braschi def. Timea Guibe 6-2, 2-6, 6-3
Natalia Janowicz def. Kimmy Herrock 6-4, 6-4
Emma Petersen def. Suzanne Zenoni 5-7, 6-1, 6-4
Kirsten Ward def. Dylan Owens 6-3, 7-6(3)
Rebecca Harris def. Taylor Casey 6-2, 7-6 (4)

UP NEXT
JMU faces Davidson in non-conference action at Hillside Courts tomorrow at 3 p.m. The match is part of a men's-women's doubleheader between the Dukes and Wildcats.