SU Picks up First Ranked Win this Season
By Gill Gross
Syracuse (9-1, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) picked up its biggest win of the season on Friday, taking down No. 30 Virginia Tech (8-1, 1-1 ACC) in Blacksburg, 5-2. The win is Syracuse’s first against a ranked opponent this season. The Orange now boast a 9-1 record and have won six straight. The Hookies, who hadn’t lost all year, are now 8-1.
The doubles point came down to Gabriela Knutson and Miranda Ramirez at first doubles. Caroline Daxhelet and Natalie Novotna stayed on serve with the No. 19 doubles pairing in the nation until 5-6, at which point Daxhelet was unable to hold.
Daxhelet got her revenge in the singles against Miranda Ramirez. She won a marathon first set tie-break against and parlayed that into a commanding second set victory, 7-6 (14-12), 6-1. It is Ramirez’s second loss of the season (7-2). Libbi Mesh was the only other Orange to falter in the singles, losing 3-6, 6-3, 4-6.
Nobody’s match finished quicker than Sofya Golubovskya’s. The freshman defeated Elena Cerezo-Codina 6-0, 6-3 to get the Orange going in singles.
Dina Hegab’s match finished second. Hegab was undefeated in singles before last weekend, when she went 0-2. On Friday, the junior rebounded nicely with a 6-4, 6-1 victory. That gave SU a 3-0 lead.
Anna Shkudun clinched the duel with a 6-0, 1-6, 7-5 win over Nika Kozar. Still, there was meaningful tennis to be played. No. 18 Knutson and No. 61 Novotna battled it out on Court 1 for three sets. They split tie-breaks in the first two sets and Knutson went down a break at 2-3 in the third. From there the junior displayed her best tennis, rattling off 4 games straight. It was Knutson’s second victory over a ranked opponent this season, 7-6 (7-5), 6-7 (3-7), 6-3.
Syracuse has matched its win total from last season. Its toughest test of the season looms on Sunday. The Orange travel to Chapel Hill to take on the No. 1 Tar Heels.
