Kentucky Women’s Tennis Defeats Eagles in Season Opener
FORT MYERS, Fla. – The University of Kentucky women’s tennis team propelled past Florida Gulf Coast in its season opener Wednesday, defeating the Eagles in a 5-2 decision in Fort Myers, Florida, and helping the Wildcats to a 1-0 start to the season.
Kentucky opened its season with a familiar doubles lineup, pairing Lesedi Jacobs and Anastasia Tkachenko on the first doubles court, Carla Girbau and Diana Tkachenko on the second doubles court and Carlota Molina and Brianna Tulloch on the third doubles court.
Jacobs and Tkachenko were paired together for seven matches last season, earning a reputable 5-2 record on the second and third doubles courts. In this match, the veteran duo earned Kentucky’s first win of the season after defeating Satomi Momose and Ida Ferding in a 6-2 decision.
Meanwhile, Girbau and Tkachenko picked up where they left off last fall after recording a 5-1 mark in the preseason. The duo took down Eagles’ Julia Fisch and Sara Kelly in a 6-4 decision. The win secured the doubles point in Kentucky’s favor, earning a one-point lead ahead of the singles lineup.
The Wildcats carried its doubles momentum to the singles competition, earning four of six possible wins against the Eagles’ veteran lineup.
On the first court, redshirt-junior Jacobs defeated Maja Ornberg in a 6-2, 6-4 decision, while senior A. Tkachenko beat Lourdes Ramalle, 6-3, 6-3.
Two newcomers made their official Kentucky debuts, both going undefeated in their singles and doubles matches to start the season. Girbau defeated Ida Ferding on the fourth court in a 6-2, 6-2 decision, while Molina defeated Sara Kelly on the second court with a 7-6 (1), 6-2 outcome.
Akvile Parazinskaite did not compete in the season opener.
Next on the Schedule
The Kentucky women’s tennis team will travel north to Vero Beach, Florida, to compete at the Vero Beach Invite Jan. 10-13 at the Vero Beach Country Club.
For the latest on the Kentucky women’s tennis program, follow @UKWomensTennis on Twitter and on Instagram, on Facebook and on the web at UKathletics.com.
