Tennis rallies in opening tournaments

Women’s tennis swings at the ITF 10K Charleston tournament

Women’s tennis represented VCU at the International Tennis Federation’s 10K Charleston tournament Sept. 26 – Oct. 2.

VCU finished the tournament with a 1-3 record. The Rams competed against members of the ITF’s Pro and Junior Pro Circuits. The women’s team is made up of six women from five different countries: Brazil, Germany, Denmark, Spain and Kazakhstan.

Sophomore Janina Braun defeated teammate and redshirt-freshman Isabella Capato Camargo to advance to the second round, but fell to Spain’s Celia Cervino Ruiz. The United States’ Anna Letto eliminated VCU freshman Gabriela Araujo in the first round. Sophomore Anna Rasmussen fell in consecutive sets to Chloe Beck in the first round and was also eliminated from play.

USA’s Nicole Coopersmith won the ITF 10K singles match. USA’s Andie Daniell and Canada’s Erin Routliffe won doubles. The Rams were scheduled for a tournament in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, on Oct. 7 but the trip was cancelled due to Hurricane Matthew.

Women dominate at the Duke James Bonk Invite and Belford Cup

The Rams kicked off the fall season Sept. 18 at the Duke James Bonk Invite and Belford Cup. VCU posted a combined 11-9 record in singles. The tournament was held at Duke University and The University of Maryland.

Braun and Rasmussen participated in the Duke James Bonk Invite. The duo dominated the courts with a 4-2 singles record, along with a second place finish in the doubles Blue Flight.

Rasmussen fell to the University of Miami’s Ana Madcur in the opening round of the Yellow singles flight, but rallied for a win over Duke’s Christina Makarova and got revenge over Madcur in the consolation final. Braun’s path was similar, as she dropped a tightly contested match to Miami’s Maci Epstein in the opening round, but bounced back with back-to-back straight set victories.

Arajuo, Berezhnaya and Aubets represented the Black and Gold at The Bedford Cup in College Park, Maryland.

Aubets placed second in the Consolation Final and finished with a 3-2 record in the tournament.  Berezhnaya also finished with a 3-2 record on the weekend. In her first tournament with the Rams, Arajuo posted a 1-3 record in singles play.

Men’s Tennis takes the Ivy-plus invitational

Junior Louis Ishizaka and sophomore Vitor Lima provided men’s tennis with strong individual performances during their fall opener, the Ivy-Plus Invitational from Sept. 23 – Sept. 25.

Ishizaka and Lima combined for a 5-3 record in singles play. Ishizaka won three of his four matches, defeating The University of Tennessee’s Steven Karl, Princeton University’s Josh Yablon, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Lamar Remy.

Lima finished the tournament with a 2-2 record. Lima dropped his first two matches, including one to Tennessee’s Timo Stodder, ranked 89th by the ITA.

The Sao Paulo, Brazil native bounced back to win his final two matches in singles play, including a marathon, 6-3, 1-6, 11-9 affair with Marist’s Christopher Gladden. Ishizaka and Lima also teamed up in doubles play. The duo finished the tournament with an 0-3 record.

VCU coach Paul Kostin said the tournament was a good chance for both players to compete in quality matches.

“I was very impressed with Louis’ effort and focus the whole weekend,” Kostin said. “His hard work over the last year has really paid off, and I am expecting a lot from him as the season continues.”

Kostin said although Vitor did not play his best this weekend, he found a way to win his last two singles matches in spite of that.

“I am really excited about where this team is at the moment. We have a lot of work to do, but the future’s very bright.”

The men’s team returns to action Oct. 13-16 at the ITA Atlantic Regionals in Blacksburg, Virginia.

Jessica Wetzler, Contributing Writer