2022 Saint Mary's Invitational Results

MORAGA, Calif. – Competing in both doubles and singles action against a variety of NCAA Division I opponents, Academy of Art tennis wrapped up three days of action in the Saint Mary's Invitational on Sunday out at the Gaels' Timothy Korth Tennis Complex.

The "Red" doubles bracket, one of two in the tournament, saw the team of junior Yun "Nicole" Shiau and Maria Vittoria Casucci start on a winning note as they defeated host SMU's Gabriela Tevez and Jamie Pope 6-4. In the next round, however, the Urban Knights tandem would run into Chiho Mushika and Qianer Qiu from University of San Francisco, the eventual bracket winners, and the result would be a 6-1 loss. Thereafter, Shiau and Casucci delivered a pair of victories, topping Santa Clara's Velizara Fileva and Varya Zlotnik and University of the Pacific's Megan Carmichael and Olivia Wiese 6-3.

It was a different path for junior Viktoria Leth and Paulina Alvarez who were initially bested by Sacramento State's Julia Moraes and Alexis Johnson 6-3 then dropped a hard-fought 7-6 result including a 9-7 tiebreaker to Arianna Capogrosso and Alicia Yue of USF. Leth and Alvarez would also meet Carmichael and Wiese who captured a 6-3 win over the Knights and, on the final day, Weronika Ejsmont and Grace McSkimming of Sacramento State came out on top 6-1.

Representing ART U in the "Blue" doubles bracket, freshman Jessica Plazas and sophomore Erica Hellbe began by battling into a tiebreaker with Jenna Gordon and Kacey Feng of Santa Clara which the Broncos won 7-5 for the 7-6 score. Pacific's Klara Kosan and MiaAngelina Ruja then recorded a 6-2 victory over the pair before more narrow finals ensued. It was a 7-5 defeat at Cal Poly's Kennedy Buntrock and Shreya Ravilla initially then another tiebreaker, this one 7-4, for the 7-6 triumph by Sally Pethybridge and Alaia Rubio Perez of University of Portland.

Knights starting in each of the same two color singles brackets included Casucci falling to USF's Capogrosso 6-2, 6-2 in the "Red" bracket then moving past UC Davis' Lauren Ko via a walkover. Though Casucci was defeated by SCU's Kacey Feng 6-4, 6-1 in the consolation bracket's quarterfinals, a 6-4, 3-6, 10-8 victory over Sac State's Ejsmont closed out the tournament.

Sophomore Julia Ortega, who progressed through three singles matches, initially dropped a 6-1, 6-3 decision to Kaia Wolfe of UC Davis before a loss to Pacific's Wiese 6-3, 6-2. Ortega would end the weekend with a victory, however, taking down Jamie Pope of Saint Mary's 6-2, 6-1.

Meanwhile, Hellbe could not get past USF's Alicia Yue (6-3, 6-1) and Sacramento State's Alexis Johnson (6-4, 6-3) before UoP's Zara Fung needed a third-set tiebreaker to prevail 3-6, 6-3, 10-2. Leth started her singles run with a 6-4, 6-2 defeat at the hands of Madison Weekley from SMU then also found herself in a third-set tiebreaker, where Madeleine Page of UC Davis edged past her 1-6, 6-1, 10-8.

The "Blue" singles bracket initially featured both Shiau and Plazas who each turned in victories late in the tournament. After Lou Baudouin of Sac State topped Shiau 6-1, 7-5, the Communications & Media Technologies major advanced past Pacific's Kosan due to an injury. Though Olivia Rook of Saint Mary's rallied late for the 3-6, 6-0, 10-8 win, Shiau got the better of Pacific's Danielle Zamora 5-7, 7-5, 10-8 on the final day. Plazas hung tough throughout her three singles matches, falling to Yana Gurevich of UC Davis despite a tiebreaker in the opening set 7-6 (7-1), 6-4 then going to a third-set tiebreaker in a losing effort against SCU's Velizara Fileva 6-4, 2-6, 10-7. Plazas wrapped up his series by delivering a victory in straight sets, bettering Carlotta Nonnis Marzano of Fresno State 6-1, 6-4.

With its fall season now complete, Academy of Art returns to the court in the coming spring.