Women's Tennis to Play for Pair of MVC Individual Titles Sunday in Missouri

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – In its first tournament of the fall, the Belmont University women's tennis team will vie for a pair of Missouri Valley Conference individual titles Sunday at the 2022 MVC Individual Championships in Springfield, Missouri. The Bruins earned a total of seven match wins Saturday at the Cooper Tennis Complex highlighted by freshman Mariia Hlahola's dominant semifinal win in the top singles flight.
 
The doubles duo of sophomore Anastasiya Zholdakova and graduate student Meredith Roberts reached the championship in the No. 3 doubles draw with a hard-fought 8-7 win over Murray State's Marit Kreugel and Annika Pschorr Saturday. After claiming the semifinal match 7-3 in the tiebreaker, Zholdakova and Roberts will take on the University of Illinois Chicago's Zara Ryan and Cora-Lynn von Dungern Sunday for the flight's title.
 
Hlahola routed Illinois State's Tijana Zlatanovic in straight sets, 6-0, 6-2, in the semifinals of the No. 1 singles draw. She will face Diana Cabrera of host Missouri State in the championship match Sunday.
 
Zholdakova was also victorious in singles action Saturday as she dismissed the Racers' Sarah Bureau 7-5, 6-2 in the back draw of the second flight to advance to Sunday's fifth-place match where she will meet Mille Hagensen of Drake.
 
Sophomore Viktoria Kliimand will also compete in a fifth-place match Sunday after getting past Valparaiso's Demi Jhaveri in a third-set super tiebreaker (10-5) Saturday in the No. 4 singles draw. She will go up against Bradley's Madalena Andrade.
 
Senior Taylor Trondson and Roberts were both straight-set winners Saturday in the consolation brackets of the No. 5 and No. 6 singles flights, respectively. Notching a 6-3, 6-2 victory over the Bears' Alyson Piskulic, Taylor Trondson will take on Bradley's Maria Bezmenova Sunday in the fifth-place match of the fifth flight. Roberts ousted the Beacons' Elizabeth Sobieski in back-to-back 6-3 sets to reach the fifth-place match of the sixth flight where she will meet Missouri State's Silva Avakian.
 
Sophomore Aly Getty took fifth place in the No. 7 singles flight by default after the Braves' Juliana Martinez couldn't play.
 
Fellow sophomore Abi Solomon will battle Murray State's Emma Honore for third place at the No. 3 singles flight Sunday after the Redbirds' Nevena Kolarevic got the best of Saturday's semifinal match.
 
Play is set to begin at 9 a.m. Sunday morning.
 
Saturday's Results
 
Doubles
Anastasiya Zholdakova/Meredith Roberts (Belmont) def. Marit Kreugel/Annika Pschorr (Murray State) 8-7 (3)
 
Singles
Mariia Hlahola (Belmont) def. Tijana Zlatanovic (Illinois State) 6-0, 6-2
Anastasiya Zholdakova (Belmont) def. Sarah Bureau (Murray State) 7-5, 6-2
Nevena Kolarevic (Illinois State) def. Abi Solomon (Belmont) 6-1, 6-0
Viktoria Kliimand (Belmont) def. Demi Jhaveri (Valparaiso) 6-4, 4-6, 10-5
Taylor Trondson (Belmont) def. Alyson Piskulic (Missouri State) 6-3, 6-2
Meredith Roberts (Belmont) def. Elizabeth Sobieski (Valparaiso) 6-3, 6-3
Aly Getty (Belmont) def. Juliana Martinez (Bradley) by default (injury)
 
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