UK Doubles Advance to National Championship of Oracle/ITA Masters

MALIBU, Calif. – Mami Adachi and Aldila Sutjiadi came into Saturday’s semifinal looking to capitalize on their first top-10 win of the 2015-16 season. The ninth-ranked Wildcats picked up a top-five win and move to the national championship final by defeating No. 3 Maegan Manasse and Denise Starr from California, 7-6 (3), 6-3.

“I’m so grateful to be in the finals of a national championship,” Sutjiadi said. “We are going to do our best tomorrow and trust that our process will bring us the result that we want.” Adachi would add, “I’m so happy. Adila helped me a lot out there today. I started to lose my confidence and she encouraged me to keep playing my best.” 

Manasse and Starr, when paired together, finished last season with a record of 32-10 and were defeated in the Round of 16 of in the NCAA Tournament. The duo was seeded No. 1 overall in this year’s doubles field at the Oracle/ITA Masters. 

In the first set, the Wildcats would break in the first game and Adachi served from 1-0. For the rest of the set the two teams went back and forth trading points and games. Eventually, after gaining even more confidence, Adachi slammed a service winner for the Wildcats to take the set 7-6 (3). Adachi and Sutjiadi won 72 percent of the first serve points going 21/29.

From that point on, the second set was strictly business as Kentucky won in nine games, 6-3, to defeat the Golden Bears and advance to the finals of the Oracle/ITA Masters. The Wildcats won 77 percent of first serve points as opposed to California’s 56 percent in the second set. 

After being defeated in the Round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament by the other Golden Bear pairing, Klara Fabikova and Zsofi Susanyi, Adachi and Sutjiadi have come roaring back with two top-10 wins, one being a top five. The two have showcased their skill and displayed their chemistry proving that they are one of the elite pairings in the country. 

Adachi and Sutjiadi advance to the national championship final, which will be played on Sunday at approximately 4 p.m. ET. Fans can follow live stats here. The Wildcats face Giuliana Olmos and Gabby Smith from Southern California. 

To get to this point, the Trojans had to defeat Gavrilovska and Pierson from Texas A&M and upset No. 4 Campbell and Colton from Vanderbilt, who they Olmos eliminated last season with her former doubles partner Zoë Scandalis. 

Adachi and Sutjiadi are 2-0 vs. teams from California in this tournament. 

Visit UKathletics.com for the most up-to-date information on the Kentucky women’s tennis team and all 22 varsity sports. For additional info, notes and behind-the-scenes updates, follow the team on Twitter at @UKWomensTennis and on Facebook.