BRADENTON, Fla. – The No. 6 Nova Southeastern tennis team (20-3) extended the second-most-winning season in program history on Friday, opening up the Sunshine State Conference Championships with a 4-0 victory over Florida Southern (15-7) at IMG Academy. The fourth-seeded Sharks advance to the SSC semifinal to face No. 1 Barry.
Due to lightning and rain concerns in the morning during the men's session, matches were pushed back and all quarterfinal competition was played in a modified format – opening with only the top three flights.
Doubles
- After the Sharks fell behind in the first doubles finish, senior Ana Navas and junior Daniela Obando made their first appearance as a tandem since Feb. 21, claiming a 6-3 victory over Selin Devrimci and Natalija Popovic to move NSU toward the impending win.
- Playing back in their natural slot with the twos, junior Sarah Wardenburg and freshman Natalie Espinal worked out a 6-4 win over Minnie Kim and Magda Stepnik to secure the team doubles point.
Singles
- Ranking 28th in the latest ITA standings, Espinal notched the first singles victory, collecting 6-2, 6-3 victories over Devrimci in the first flight – again replacing Navas in the top spot.
- Freshman Diane Follin-Arbelet pushed the Sharks right to the edge of the finish with a 6-4, 6-1 over Natalija Popovic for the 3-0 NSU advantage.
- As Lorena Rionda pushed Obando to extras, the other flights began play and sophomore Chantal Nosievici avenged a doubles loss earlier in the match with a 6-0, 6-3 win over Stepnik for the match-ending point.
- Obando and Wardenburg were leading their respective sets at the close of the match.
Straight From Coach Doug Neagle
Up Next: The Sharks will square off with the Buccaneers on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. in the SSC semifinal at IMG Academy. The winner will advance to Sunday's 1:00 p.m. final, the losing going on to the third-place match – also at 1:00 p.m.
