Gonzaga University
Saint Mary's Fall Invitational Day 2
Koehler, Whittle Advance on Day Two
10/10/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
MORAGA, Calif.-Two Bulldogs remain active in their main singles brackets as the Gonzaga University women's tennis team continued play at the Saint Mary's Fall Invitational Saturday at the Korth Tennis Complex in Moraga, Calif.
Senior Sissi Koehler advanced to the final of the C Singles bracket with a pair of wins Saturday. She opened the day with another strong win, beating San Jose State's Justine Deleval 6-0, 6-1, and through her first eight sets played at the Saint Mary's Fall Invitational, Koehler won 24 of 25 games played. During her semifinal match that changed, but Koehler still pulled out a three set victory over Samantha Martino of UC Davis to reach the bracket's championship match.
In the A Singles bracket, freshmen Sophie Whittle and Nevada Apollo both advanced to the quarterfinals, and Whittle picked up another win to reach the flight's semifinal round. Whittle took down the Gaels' Jana McCord 7-5, 6-3 in her Round of 16 matchup and followed that up with a win over San Jose State's Marine Dans by straight 6-2 sets for a spot in the semis. Apollo, meanwhile, beat Saint Mary's' Emma Critser 6-1, 6-2 in her first singles match of the day but fell to the Spartans' Sybille Gauvain after putting up a tough fight in the first set tiebreak. The Las Vegas native lost 7-6 (13), 6-4.
In the A Singles Consolation, sophomore Alex Bourguignon took Fresno State's Emma Wilson to three sets before falling in a super tiebreak 6-1, 1-6, (10-5).
In the B Singles flight, both Samantha Polayes and Domonique Garley lost in the Round of 16. Polayes went three sets against UC Davis' Lani Rae Green, falling in a tiebreak in the first set but taking the second 3-6. Green won the third by a similar 6-3 score, however, eliminating the GU senior. Garley, meanwhile, lost in two sets to Anneka Watts of Fresno State.
In doubles play, Polayes and Whittle reached the championship match of the A Doubles Consolation bracket. The duo's first match in the bracket was a semifinal contest against Sacramento State's Deimante Bulatovaite and Alina Soltanici, which the Zags won 8-4. They'll face a duo from San Jose State in the final.
In the B Doubles Consolation bracket, Koehler and Garley reached the semifinals with an 8-3 win over the Spartans' Justine Deleval and Miyo Kobayashi.
"I'm proud of the way our entire team played today," said Gonzaga women's tennis head coach D.J. Gurule. "We battled for every point and are getting some great match experience against some very talented teams. This team has worked very hard this fall and it is definitely showing on the court. We are excited to finish strong tomorrow."
The Saint Mary's Fall Invitational will conclude Sunday, Oct. 10, again at Korth Tennis Complex in Moraga. Doubles play will begin at 8:30 a.m. while singles play will get underway an hour later.
A Singles
Nevada Apollo (Gonzaga) def. Emma Critser (Saint Mary's) 6-1, 6-2 (Round of 16)
Sophie Whittle (Gonzaga) def. Jana McCord (Saint Mary's) 7-5, 6-3 (Round of 16)
Sybille Gauvain (San Jose State) def. Nevada Apollo (Gonzaga) 7-6 (13), 6-4 (Quarterfinal)
Sophie Whittle (Gonzaga) def. Marine Dans (San Jose State) 6-2, 6-2 (Quarterfinal)
A Singles Consolation
Emma Wilson (Fresno State) def. Alex Bourguignon (Gonzaga) 6-1, 1-6, (10-5)
B Singles
Anneka Watts (Fresno State) def. Domonique Garley (Gonzaga) 6-4, 6-3 (Round of 16)
Lani Rae Green (UC Davis) def. Samantha Polayes (Gonzaga) 7-6 (5), 3-6, 6-3 (Round of 16)
C Singles
Sissi Koehler (Gonzaga) def. Justine Deleval (San Jose State) 6-0, 6-1 (Quarterfinals)
Sissi Koehler (Gonzaga) def. Samantha Martino (UC Davis) 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 (Semifinal)
Doubles A Consolation
Polayes/Whittle (Gonzaga) def. Bulatovaite/Soltanici (Sacramento State) 8-4 (Semifinals)
Doubles B Consolation
Koehler/Garley (Gonzaga) def. Deleval/Kobayashi (San Jose State) 8-3 (Quarterfinals)
