BLACKSBURG, Va. - The Duquesne women's tennis team opened Atlantic 10 play on Saturday, Feb. 23, defeating Davidson for the first time in program history by winning a 4-3 decision over the Wildcats (5-4, 0-2 A-10) at the Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center on the campus of Virginia Tech. The Dukes improved to 6-4 on the year and 1-0 in A-10 action.
Julianne Herman and
Laurel Shymansky got Duquesne rolling with a 6-4 win at the top of the lineup, the duo's eighth appearance at No. 1 singles this season. Davidson would earn victories at the No. 2 (
Aishwarya Kona/
Margot Pessy) and No. 3 (
Meredith Lee/
Priyanka Mitta) slots over the Dukes to claim a 2-1 lead after doubles competition.
"Davidson played a great doubles point, you can tell they were taught very well on doubles strategy, assistant Coach Hunter Callahan said. "Number two and three doubles were just a little too strong today."
At No. 1 singles, Herman picked up a 6-2 win in the first set, before Davidson's  Megan Scholvinck earned a 6-4 triumph in the second set. After falling behind 4-1 in the third set, Herman rallied to collect a 6-4 win for Duquesne.
At No. 3 singles, Aishwarya Kona battled back after losing the opening set in a tiebreak to win the match 6-7 (4-7), 6-2, 6-0 for the Dukes.
Davidson picked up wins at No. 4 singles over Maddy Adams in a close 6-3, 6-3 decision and at No. 5 singles over Elizabeth Truluck 1-6, 6-3, 7-5 in three sets.
Freshman Margot Pessy was able to come back from a set down to claim a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory at No. 6 singles. Â
At No. 2 singles, Shymansky fell behind 2-5 in the first set before battling to win five straight games to win 7-5. However, Davidson's Alexandra Abele was not going to go away without a fight. Shymansky would drop the second set by a score of 6-1. In a back-and-forth third set, Shymansky found herself down three match points serving at 5-6. She was able to fight all of them off and force a deciding third set tiebreak. She used this momentum from saving the match points to take the third set by a score of 7-6 (7-4) and clinch the match for the Dukes.
Duquesne had lost all five meetings with Davidson coming into the match in the all-time series which dates back to 1992.
"We are really proud of the way the girls fought today, said head coach Vanessa Steiner. "It was a total team win. We have another tough conference match coming up next week so we will go into this week of practice with clear minds and work hard to prepare for a solid George Washington team."
The Dukes return to action on Sunday, March 3 hosting the Colonials at 1 p.m. at Alpha Tennis and Fitness of Pittsburgh.
SINGLES
| 1. Julianne Herman (DUQ) def. Megan Scholvinck (DAV) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 |
| 2. Laurel Shymansky (DUQ) def. Alexandra Abele (DAV) 7-5, 1-6, 7-6 (7-4) |
| 3. Aishwarya Kona (DUQ) def. Gabrielle Centenari (DAV) 6-7 (4-7), 6-2, 6-0 |
| 4. Samantha Armas (DAV) def. Maddy Adams (DUQ) 6-3, 6-3 |
| 5. Elizabeth Truluck (DAV) def. Meredith Lee (DUQ) 1-6, 6-3, 7-5 |
| 6. Margot Pessy (DUQ) def. Mira Gladstone (DAV) 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 |
DOUBLES
