PHILADELPHIA – Led by the strong play of Ekaterina Tour, the Maryland women's tennis team dominated the Cissie Leary Invitational this weekend.
FRIDAY
Play kicked off on Friday morning with the doubles bracket, where Tour and her sophomore partner Caroline Williams ran away with the competition. The pair knocked off a duo from Temple by a score of 7-6 and then went on to defeat a group from Cornell 6-4 to advance to the semi-finals on Saturday.
Tour paced the Terps in the singles competition as well, defeating Jackie Zuhse of Penn State 6-1, 6-1. Freshman Katsiaryna Yemelyanenka won as well, knocking off Anna Morozova of St. Johns, 3-6, 6-4, 10-1.
Williams also found success in the second singles flight, as she blew past Bennett Dunn of Penn State 6-4, 6-4.
SATURDAY
Tour continued her dominance on Saturday, knocking off Rosie Cheng of William and Mary 6-4, 4-6, 10-8, and Kana Daniel of host Penn, 5-7, 7-6, 13-11. The two wins put Tour in the semi-finals on Sunday morning against Jessica Livianu of St. Johns.
Yemelyanenka kept pace with her teammate, winning both of her matches as well. The freshman defeated Elizabeth Zordani of Yale 6-2, 6-4, and Sarah Dreyfuss of Penn 6-2, 6-3. Yemelyanenka earned a spot in the semi-finals as well, with a match against Marika Cusick of Cornell on Sunday morning.
Williams knocked off Yana Khon of Temple by a score of 6-3, 6-1, before falling to Lina Qostal of Penn.
Tour and Williams were also back at it in the doubles bracket, dominating a pair from Penn 6-2. The win matched them up with Delaware in the final of the doubles bracket on Sunday.
SUNDAY
Facing a duo from Delaware, Tour and Williams were able to take home the doubles crown Sunday morning after winning by a score of 7-5.
In singles play, Tour dropped her semi-final match 6-3, 6-1, against Jessica Livianu of St. Johns. However, Yemelyanenka defeated Cusick of Cornell 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 in her first match, but then fell in the finals against Livianu by a score of 6-4, 6-1.
The Terps will be back in action beginning on Friday at the ITA Regionals in Norfolk, Virginia.
