TicketsTULSA, Okla. – The University of Cincinnati tennis program defeated Wichita State, 5-1, in the first round of the American Athletic Conference Tennis Championships on Wednesday afternoon at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The No.7-seeded Bearcats improve to 16-6 on the season and move on to face No. 2 seeded SMU (14-8) on Wednesday at 9 a.m. CT / 10 a.m. ET.
HOW THE BEARCATS MATCHUP AGAINST SMU
UC is 0-2 all-time against SMU. Last time they faced each other on March 18, 2021, the Mustangs defeated the Bearcats 6-1. Former Bearcat Alexia Coutino earned the only point for the Bearcats. Maria Santilli saw her fair share of action against SMU, posting the longest match of the day. Santilli fought through the first set where she fell just short after a 7-6(4) victory in the Mustangs favor awarded Huth a one-point advantage. The singles match wrapped up after a 6-3 second set victory by Huth concluded the match for the Bearcats.
COACH TOTH ON THE WIN
"Really excited to get a win today. This conference is so tough and anytime you advance in the conference tournament you have had a good day. Wichita State's girls deserve a ton of credit. They have been short handed for much of the season. This was our second match against them and their squad never felt sorry for themselves. They always compete. Losing the doubles point gave Wichita State a ton of momentum heading into singles. But our girls were terrific on every singles court. Ioana Guna played one of her better matches of the season. Maria Santilli and Kelli Niehaus had to really step up in class and were outstanding in a pretty big moment. Callie Flanagan stepped up as well and came through huge for her team. SMU presents a major challenge tomorrow, but if we can come out and compete like we did today, anything can happen I feel."
BREAKDOWN OF WIN OVER WICHITA STATE
Wichita State got things started with an early 1-0 lead after earning the doubles point. Jessie Zheng and KingWei Kong of Wichita State dominated on court one, defeating freshman Elizabeth Pendergast and redshirt sophomore Cassie McLay 6-0. Redshirt seniors Ioana Guna and Emma Miceli put up a good fight on court two but ended up falling to Natsumi Kurahashi and Harriett Hamilton on court 2, 6-4.
Cincinnati did not back down, going on to earn four straight wins in singles along with the default win on court six.
Freshman Callie Flanagan put up a tough fight on court five, winning the tie breaker and going on to easily win in set two, 6-1. She earns her first postseason tournament win of her career, improving to 14-7 overall and 8-3 in the Spring season.
Redshirt sophomore Kelli Niehaus won both sets 6-3 on court four to continue her successful Spring campaign, improving to 25-4 overall on the season and 15-2 in the Spring.
Guna and redshirt junior Maria Santilli clinched their matches at the same time to earn two more points for UC. On court one for only the second time this season, Guna improves to 12-12 overall and 9-9 in the Spring after winning 6-4 and 6-2 in her match. Santilli saw action on court two for the first time this season, improving to14-10 overall and 11-7 in the Spring after winning both her sets 6-3.
RESULTS
Cincinnati 5, Wichita State 1
FIRST ROUND
4/20/22 at Tulsa, Oklahoma
Michael D. Case Tennis Center
Doubles
1. Jessie Zheng / LingWei Kong (WSU) def. Cassie McLay / Elizabeth Pendergast (UC), 6-0
2. Natsumi Kurahashi / Harriet Hamilton (WSU) def. Ioana Guna / Emma Miceli (UC), 6-4
3. Callie Flanagan / Kelli Niehaus (UC) vs. WSU, Default
Order of finish: 1, 2
Singles
1. Ioana Guna (UC) def. Natsumi Kurahashi (WSU), 6-4, 6-2
2. Maria Santilli (UC) def. LingWei Kong (WSU), 6-3, 6-3
3. Emma Micelli vs. Jessie Zheng (WSU), 6-1, 2-6, 1-0, unf.
4. Kelli Niehaus (UC) def. Harriet Hamilton (WSU), 6-3, 6-3
5. Callie Flanagan (UC) def. Clara Whitaker (WSU), 7-6 (3), 6-1
6. Sofia Bruno def. No player (WSU), Default
Order of finish: 6, 5, 4, 2, 1
HOW TO WATCH THE NEXT MATCH
Complete coverage of The American Tennis Championships, including live scoring of each match, can be found on the conference's Championship Central site. Live coverage of the women's and men's finals will be available on ESPN+.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati tennis, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team (@GoBearcatsWTEN) and Head Coach Eric Toth (@EricToth1) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.
The No.7-seeded Bearcats improve to 16-6 on the season and move on to face No. 2 seeded SMU (14-8) on Wednesday at 9 a.m. CT / 10 a.m. ET.
HOW THE BEARCATS MATCHUP AGAINST SMU
UC is 0-2 all-time against SMU. Last time they faced each other on March 18, 2021, the Mustangs defeated the Bearcats 6-1. Former Bearcat Alexia Coutino earned the only point for the Bearcats. Maria Santilli saw her fair share of action against SMU, posting the longest match of the day. Santilli fought through the first set where she fell just short after a 7-6(4) victory in the Mustangs favor awarded Huth a one-point advantage. The singles match wrapped up after a 6-3 second set victory by Huth concluded the match for the Bearcats.
COACH TOTH ON THE WIN
"Really excited to get a win today. This conference is so tough and anytime you advance in the conference tournament you have had a good day. Wichita State's girls deserve a ton of credit. They have been short handed for much of the season. This was our second match against them and their squad never felt sorry for themselves. They always compete. Losing the doubles point gave Wichita State a ton of momentum heading into singles. But our girls were terrific on every singles court. Ioana Guna played one of her better matches of the season. Maria Santilli and Kelli Niehaus had to really step up in class and were outstanding in a pretty big moment. Callie Flanagan stepped up as well and came through huge for her team. SMU presents a major challenge tomorrow, but if we can come out and compete like we did today, anything can happen I feel."
BREAKDOWN OF WIN OVER WICHITA STATE
Wichita State got things started with an early 1-0 lead after earning the doubles point. Jessie Zheng and KingWei Kong of Wichita State dominated on court one, defeating freshman Elizabeth Pendergast and redshirt sophomore Cassie McLay 6-0. Redshirt seniors Ioana Guna and Emma Miceli put up a good fight on court two but ended up falling to Natsumi Kurahashi and Harriett Hamilton on court 2, 6-4.
Cincinnati did not back down, going on to earn four straight wins in singles along with the default win on court six.
Freshman Callie Flanagan put up a tough fight on court five, winning the tie breaker and going on to easily win in set two, 6-1. She earns her first postseason tournament win of her career, improving to 14-7 overall and 8-3 in the Spring season.
Redshirt sophomore Kelli Niehaus won both sets 6-3 on court four to continue her successful Spring campaign, improving to 25-4 overall on the season and 15-2 in the Spring.
Guna and redshirt junior Maria Santilli clinched their matches at the same time to earn two more points for UC. On court one for only the second time this season, Guna improves to 12-12 overall and 9-9 in the Spring after winning 6-4 and 6-2 in her match. Santilli saw action on court two for the first time this season, improving to14-10 overall and 11-7 in the Spring after winning both her sets 6-3.
RESULTS
Cincinnati 5, Wichita State 1
FIRST ROUND
4/20/22 at Tulsa, Oklahoma
Michael D. Case Tennis Center
Doubles
1. Jessie Zheng / LingWei Kong (WSU) def. Cassie McLay / Elizabeth Pendergast (UC), 6-0
2. Natsumi Kurahashi / Harriet Hamilton (WSU) def. Ioana Guna / Emma Miceli (UC), 6-4
3. Callie Flanagan / Kelli Niehaus (UC) vs. WSU, Default
Order of finish: 1, 2
Singles
1. Ioana Guna (UC) def. Natsumi Kurahashi (WSU), 6-4, 6-2
2. Maria Santilli (UC) def. LingWei Kong (WSU), 6-3, 6-3
3. Emma Micelli vs. Jessie Zheng (WSU), 6-1, 2-6, 1-0, unf.
4. Kelli Niehaus (UC) def. Harriet Hamilton (WSU), 6-3, 6-3
5. Callie Flanagan (UC) def. Clara Whitaker (WSU), 7-6 (3), 6-1
6. Sofia Bruno def. No player (WSU), Default
Order of finish: 6, 5, 4, 2, 1
HOW TO WATCH THE NEXT MATCH
Complete coverage of The American Tennis Championships, including live scoring of each match, can be found on the conference's Championship Central site. Live coverage of the women's and men's finals will be available on ESPN+.
FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati tennis, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team (@GoBearcatsWTEN) and Head Coach Eric Toth (@EricToth1) on Twitter. You can also find the Bearcats on Instagram and Facebook.