The University of Mississippi Athletics
Bortles Brings Revenge into Opening Day of Play in Palm Springs
1/11/2019 | Women's Tennis
Ole Miss continues play Saturday at the La Quinta Resort
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. -- Ole Miss Women's Tennis opened its 2019 schedule Friday, pulling off a solid day of performances at the National Collegiate Tennis Classic, held at the La Quinta Resort and Country Club.
The field of competitors included defending national champions in No.1 Stanford and No. 8 UCLA, as well as west coast foes in Arizona and San Diego.
Junior Alexa Bortles was flawless in individual action, gliding through the first round over San Diego's Gemma Garcia 6-2, 7-5 and then continued to roll, defeating a familiar foe in UCLA's Alaina Miller in identical 6-3, 6-3 decisions. Miller and Bortles faced each other last May in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Championships, with the Bruin emerging as the victor.
Senior Allie Sanford also won her first round of singles, grueling through a three-hour affair with USD's Maria-Paula Torres before emerging victorious. After dropping the opener 6-7, she fired back to take sets two and three at 6-4, 7-6. The momentum was short lived, however, as the veteran dropped her second round contest to Arizona's Emma Wilson, ranked 86thin the latest ITA Rankings (November 2018).
The pair teamed up for doubles play, but couldn't perfect the 3-for-3 against the Toreros, falling 6-3 to Tyrina/Chow.
Partners and classmates Anna Vrbenska and Tereza Janatova received a first round bye in doubles, but each fell in second-round singles action. The juniors each boast a singles rating from the latest ITA Rankings, with Vrbenska tied at 114 and Janatova at 112.
AT THE NET WITH… HEAD COACH MARK BEYERS
"It was good to keep score again after such a long layoff. These matches will really help the team to get ready for dual match season [January 26, hosting Purdue]… We are looking forward to a lot more competition this weekend… It was a great individual win for Alexa [Bortles], beating a very experienced UCLA player, and actually getting revenge for a loss to the same girl when we played them in the Round of 16 in the NCAA Championships this past May."
RESULTS
First Round- Doubles
Vrbenska-Janatova BYE
Tyrina-Chow (USD) def. Bortles/Sanford, 3-6
First Round- Singles
Allie Sanford def. Maria-Paula Torres (USD), 6-7, 6-4, 7-6
Alexa Bortles def. Gemma Garcia (USD), 6-2, 7-5
Second Round- Singles
Alexa Bortles def. Alaina Miller (UCLA), 6-3, 6-3
No. 86 Emma Wilson (Arizona) def. Allie Sanford, 2-6, 2-6
Sara Choy (Stanford) def. No. T114 Anna Vrbenska, 3-6, 3-6
Kati Kukuras (USD) def. No. 112 Tereza Janatova, 6-7, 3-6
UP NEXT
Bortles, Vrbenska, Janatova, and Sanford will join the rest of the Rebels, heading to Honolulu for the Rainbow Wahine Invite, a "hidden dual" with Washington and the hosts, Hawaii.
For more information on Ole Miss Women's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWTennis, on Facebook at OleMissWTennis and on Instagram at OleMissWTennis. Also follow Coach Beyers on Twitter, @MarkBeyers.
The field of competitors included defending national champions in No.1 Stanford and No. 8 UCLA, as well as west coast foes in Arizona and San Diego.
Junior Alexa Bortles was flawless in individual action, gliding through the first round over San Diego's Gemma Garcia 6-2, 7-5 and then continued to roll, defeating a familiar foe in UCLA's Alaina Miller in identical 6-3, 6-3 decisions. Miller and Bortles faced each other last May in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Championships, with the Bruin emerging as the victor.
Senior Allie Sanford also won her first round of singles, grueling through a three-hour affair with USD's Maria-Paula Torres before emerging victorious. After dropping the opener 6-7, she fired back to take sets two and three at 6-4, 7-6. The momentum was short lived, however, as the veteran dropped her second round contest to Arizona's Emma Wilson, ranked 86thin the latest ITA Rankings (November 2018).
The pair teamed up for doubles play, but couldn't perfect the 3-for-3 against the Toreros, falling 6-3 to Tyrina/Chow.
Partners and classmates Anna Vrbenska and Tereza Janatova received a first round bye in doubles, but each fell in second-round singles action. The juniors each boast a singles rating from the latest ITA Rankings, with Vrbenska tied at 114 and Janatova at 112.
AT THE NET WITH… HEAD COACH MARK BEYERS
"It was good to keep score again after such a long layoff. These matches will really help the team to get ready for dual match season [January 26, hosting Purdue]… We are looking forward to a lot more competition this weekend… It was a great individual win for Alexa [Bortles], beating a very experienced UCLA player, and actually getting revenge for a loss to the same girl when we played them in the Round of 16 in the NCAA Championships this past May."
RESULTS
First Round- Doubles
Vrbenska-Janatova BYE
Tyrina-Chow (USD) def. Bortles/Sanford, 3-6
First Round- Singles
Allie Sanford def. Maria-Paula Torres (USD), 6-7, 6-4, 7-6
Alexa Bortles def. Gemma Garcia (USD), 6-2, 7-5
Second Round- Singles
Alexa Bortles def. Alaina Miller (UCLA), 6-3, 6-3
No. 86 Emma Wilson (Arizona) def. Allie Sanford, 2-6, 2-6
Sara Choy (Stanford) def. No. T114 Anna Vrbenska, 3-6, 3-6
Kati Kukuras (USD) def. No. 112 Tereza Janatova, 6-7, 3-6
UP NEXT
Bortles, Vrbenska, Janatova, and Sanford will join the rest of the Rebels, heading to Honolulu for the Rainbow Wahine Invite, a "hidden dual" with Washington and the hosts, Hawaii.
For more information on Ole Miss Women's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWTennis, on Facebook at OleMissWTennis and on Instagram at OleMissWTennis. Also follow Coach Beyers on Twitter, @MarkBeyers.
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
/ Women's Tennis
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